


Of Amethyst and Old Grudges

by VectorPrism



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Action/Adventure, Eventual Romance, F/M, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-17
Updated: 2019-02-26
Packaged: 2019-05-08 08:59:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 27
Words: 69,955
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14690769
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VectorPrism/pseuds/VectorPrism
Summary: He was a bounty hunter. She was a Jedi. She represented everything he hated. He wanted nothing more than to capture her for her bounty. Life, however, has a funny way of complicating things.





	1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Star Wars Universe or any of it's contents.

Chapter One

Boba Fett had decided he hated the desert climate of Tatooine. It was hot and dry, so much so that it gave the temperature regulator in his suit a run for its credits. On top of that there was sand everywhere. It was nothing like the cool, stormy climate of Kamino.

Kamino…

His heart sank as he thought of his home planet and the place where his father had raised him. Tears began to sting his eyes but he clenched his jaw and forced them back. He didn't have time to cry. He was thirteen now, a full adult by traditional Mandalorian standards, and this was his first solo job. He needed to honor his father's memory by completing it, not by crying over what he had lost. Maybe, just maybe, Jabba would contract jobs to him if this went well. Then he could prove to Aurra that he didn't need her help or anyone else's.

As he topped a sand dune a slight fluttering motion caught his eye. He froze, a hand going to the blaster on his hip, and looked around quickly. There was nothing but the sand, and he began to relax. The fluttering came again though, and this time he saw what the cause was. A body, half buried in the sand and wearing clothing of the same color lay a few yards from him. The fluttering had been the person's hair as the desert wind caught it.

Boba started to go check on the person but hesitated. This could be a trap. It wasn't unheard of for the Sand People to use a body as bait, but if it was someone needing help he couldn't just walk away and leave them to die. He drew his blaster and made his way over to the unmoving form. The person was small — a child and a girl from what he could tell. As he got closer he saw that she was lying face down, her limbs strewn out at angles indicating she had fallen. He kneeled down beside her and gently turned her over. Her long dark brown hair fell away to reveal a pale face and dried, cracked lips. There was a gash on her forehead that looked to be a few days old and was caked with dried blood. As his eyes roamed over her he saw a large patch of red on her side, down by her abdomen. The truth hit him like a brick: she had been shot in the back. He looked her over once more before pulling off a glove and checking to see if she was still breathing. She was, but it was faint. He stood up and looked across what remaining desert he had to travel to reach Mos Espa. It would make the journey ten times harder if he carried her there, and it would no doubt slow him down, possibly even allowing his target to escape off world.

A small groan caused him to look down at the girl again and he saw her staring back at him through half-lidded eyes. This lasted only a few seconds before she drifted back into unconsciousness. His mind made up, Boba knelt back down and lifted her into his arms before continuing on his way to Mos Espa.

He arrived in the city amid a host of strange looks. After asking around he was pointed in the direction of the hospital. Upon walking through the doors he was greeted by a receptionist who turned white the minute she took in the sight before her. She reached over and hit a switch before announcing a "Code Red".

Boba faltered. What was a code red? They didn't think he was a threat, did they? He was just trying to help the girl. He stiffened when a group of nurses and someone whom he guessed to be the doctor rushed out of a nearby hall, but they only whisked the girl from his arms and laid her on a stretcher. Not wanting to become the focus of any questioning, Boba backed away and slipped outside while the doctor began calling out a list of treatments to start.

* * *

"It'll be nice to get a break, even if it's only for a few days," The young Skywalker's voice sounded over the comm.

Obi-Wan hummed in agreement. "Thankfully we won that last battle on Muunilist. I doubt the Separatists will be so eager to throw their credits at making more droids for their army now."

Anakin voiced his agreement and the two fell into small talk as they waited on their ships to exit hyperspace. Without warning Obi-Wan felt an echo in the force, almost as if it was calling out to something. He straightened up in his seat, his senses on high alert.

"Anakin, do you sense anything?" There was silence over the comm before the younger man spoke.

"A really strong presence in the force, below us it seems like."

Obi-Wan checked his navigation system. Their hyperspace route was currently taking them over the planet Tatooine.

"You go on ahead to Coruscant, Anakin. Give our report to the Council. I'm going to drop out of hyperspace and investigate this presence."

"Sure you don't need back-up," the younger Jedi asked.

"I'm sure I'll be fine," Obi-Wan said. "Our report for the council shouldn't be delayed. Go on. I'll catch up later." With that said he exited hyperspace and headed for the planet below.

He walked through the doors of Mos Espa's hospital to see white washed walls and a spartan interior. A receptionist sat behind a half circle desk in the center of the room and she smiled at him as he approached.

"May I help you, Sir?"

"Yes, my name is Obi-Wan Kenobi. I'm a representative of the Jedi Council on Coruscant. I was wondering if I may have a look around."

The receptionist's smile never wavered, but he could tell she didn't understand why he was there.

"I'm sorry, Sir," she said. "But due to privacy policies we can't allow you near the patients unless you're here to see someone."

"Well I am, in a way. I sense that someone here has a strong affinity to the force, but I have yet to actually meet them. If you or another member of the staff would be willing to accompany me while I look to ensure the privacy of your patients I would be grateful."

He watched as the receptionist stared at him, opening and closing her mouth like a fish as she didn't know what to say. She finally leaned over to an intercom and called for a Dr. Thurum to come to the front. Several minutes later a large, portly man in a white coat and hospital attire came through one of the side doors. The bright lighting overhead shown on his thinning grey hair and cast shadows in the age lines on his face, but he smiled good naturedly and greeted Obi-Wan with the air of a laid back gentleman. The receptionist spoke up when he reached the desk.

"Dr. Thurum is the head physician here at the hospital. He should be able to help you."

Obi-Wan nodded to her in thanks and explained why he was there to Thurum, asking once again if it would be alright for him to look around.

"I think I can make an exception for you, Master Jedi. Just lead the way."

They turned down several hallways before they arrived at a wing that Thurum informed Obi-Wan was the ICU. The Jedi knight walked down the hall, letting the force guide him. He came to a stop outside of one of the very last rooms and peered inside to see a young girl asleep in the bed.

"Is this it," Thurum asked, observing the Jedi's behavior.

"I believe so," Obi-Wan answered. "How long has she been here?"

"She came in two days ago. Beat up, dehydrated, and shot. We figure her homestead was attacked by Tusken Raiders and she managed to escape."

"But how did she end up  _here_? Surely she didn't walk?"

"No, no. Some stranger brought her in. Thought they were a mercenary by the looks of 'em. Never said a word, never took off their helmet, and they slipped off before we could question them."

"Interesting," Obi-Wan murmured. "Would you object to me taking a blood sample from her?"

"I wouldn't, but I think that's something you'll need to ask her," the doctor said as he pointed into the room. Obi-Wan looked to see that the girl was now awake and staring in their direction.

"Just make it short," the doctor added. "When she first came in she was dehydrated and anemic. She's better, but still weak. I'll be here if you need me."

Obi-Wan thanked him and entered the room. The girl never took her eyes off of him, but as he got closer she began trying to push herself up into a sitting position.

"That won't be necessary, young one. Please, don't strain yourself."

She paused and looked at him with uncertainty before relaxing back into her original position.

"Who are you," she asked, trying to sound brave but being betrayed by a slight waver in her voice. Obi-Wan smiled at her and pulled a chair up beside her bed before speaking.

"My name is Obi-Wan Kenobi. I'm a Jedi Knight."

He watched her eyes widen and she looked him over in awe. No doubt she had never seen a Jedi before in person. No sooner had the awe appeared, however, when it was replaced by a frown.

"But, why are you here? What do you want?"

Obi-Wan paused, unsure of how to ask her the questions he needed to without upsetting her. It was clear she was still distraught, and he didn't want to overwhelm her.

"Before we get to why I'm here I'd like to know a bit more about you. I'm afraid you have me at a disadvantage. You know my name but I don't know yours." He smiled at her and was relieved to get a small smile in return. Though it was uncertain it was still progress.

"My name is Nikita. Nikita Solaris," she said after a pause.

"It is good to meet you, Nikita. Now, can you remember anything about how you got here? Do you know where your family is?"

"Dead…" Tears welled up in the girl's eyes and began to stream down her cheeks. "The Sand People attacked while we were sleeping. I woke up to hear my mother screaming at me to run, so I did. I hadn't gotten that far when I heard the shots, but I didn't look back."

Obi-Wan watched her with pity. It wasn't right for one so young to suffer so much loss. He wanted to help her, but what could he do in the face of such a gaping wound in her life? Instead he decided to focus on the remainder of her story.

"Dr. Thurum told me you had been shot. Do you remember this?"

Nikita nodded as she tried to dry her eyes on her sleeve. "I remember running until I couldn't see our farm anymore. I slowed down, but something hit me in the back and I fell. It was so cold, and whatever hit me hurt so much. I just lay there, hoping that my mom and dad weren't gone, and that they would come find me. After that I don't remember much. I must have fallen asleep. I think I woke up once though. There was someone standing over me," she frowned. "I couldn't see them that well because of the sun."

Obi-Wan nodded, watching her. Her story matched up well with the state she had been in when she had arrived. He was amazed she remembered so much with the blow to the head she had taken, likely during her escape.

"Nikita, the reason I'm here…I felt an echo in the force and it led me here, to you."

The girl stared at him for a long moment before speaking again.

"Are you saying I'm," she struggled to think of the right word, not knowing the proper term for it, "like you?"

Obi-Wan nodded. "Yes, but to be sure I would like to take a small blood sample, if that's okay with you?"

He watched her face drain of color at the mention of drawing blood, revealing her fear of needles, but she let him take her hand without a fuss.

Five minutes later Obi-Wan was staring at the second highest midichlorian count he had ever seen.

"What does that mean," Nikita asked, trying to see the screen of the device he was holding.

"This," Obi-Wan said as he showed her the screen, "means that you are indeed the one the force was guiding me to."

"Does that mean you're going to take me away, to Coruscant?"

Obi-Wan chuckled as he put away his midichlorian tester. "In time young one. First you must focus on getting better. I will remain here on Tatooine until you are able to come with me. Now, I suggest you try and rest. If you wish to speak with me later then I would be happy to oblige. Just ask Dr. Thurum for me."

Nikita nodded, her eyes already starting to close as she drifted off to sleep. The last few days' events had taken their toll on her.

Obi-Wan made his way over to Dr. Thurum and the two of them walked back down the hall.

"So is she who you were looking for," Thurum asked.

"Most definitely. I plan on taking her back to Coruscant with me once she's well enough to travel."

"What? But what about her family? You can't just take her!"

"She has no family now. She told me she heard the shots, and with her affinity to the force I have no doubt she sensed their deaths as well. She will be safe with the Jedi, a lot safer than she is here."

Dr. Thurum looked as though he wanted to argue, but decided against it and sighed instead.

"Very well, Master Jedi. I suppose she will be safer with you and the others on Coruscant. I'll keep you updated on her status."

"I thank you, doctor," Obi-Wan said with a slight bow. "Also, here is how you may reach me. I've told her that if she wishes to speak with me she should ask you to contact me."

He bade farewell to the doctor and headed back out into the sweltering heat of Tatooine's twin suns, absently wondering if it was a coincidence that two powerful force users had been found on Tatooine in such a short time.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: I know a Code Red in most hospitals means there's a fire, but I wanted to use that particular color because of the panic it would elicit in Fett. Red sounds a lot scarier to hear than say white or blue.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Two

Nikita covered her mouth with her hand, trying to muffle the "ow!" that escaped her. Obi-Wan glanced at her before turning his attention back to listening to the voices coming from outside the crate they were in. She tried to shift as quietly as she could, hoping that her back would stop hurting from earlier. By the time she had found a more comfortable position the voices had moved off, leaving them in silence.

"So, still think this plan of yours was brilliant, master?"

Obi-Wan shot her a glare at her sarcasm before answering, "It was still a better idea than yours, padawan. At least mine had less chance of us getting killed."

"Oh yes, because cramming ourselves into a cargo crate and getting brutally thrown around the hold is so much more fun," Nikita retorted. "Now can we please get out of here?"

Obi-Wan obliged, pushing the lid off the container with his force powers. They both climbed out and looked around. The cargo hold was dark, but they could faintly make out the shapes of boxes stacked in haphazard disarray around the room. Nikita looked at one such stack that their container had been sitting on top of and groaned, remembering her smarting backside.

"You still have much to learn about patience, Nikita," Obi-Wan said in a stern tone as he ignited his lightsaber.

"I know that, master," Nikita replied as she drew her own saber, making the room a bit brighter and more navigable. "But it's hard to learn patience when you're being bounced around in a crate."

"On the contrary, padawan. There's no better time to learn."

Nikita answered that with an eye roll and began making her way through the hold. Obi-Wan hung back for a moment, studying his padawan. It had been a little over four years since he had first brought her to the temple, and in that time she had come a long way from the meek, shy girl he had encountered on Tatooine. Though the council was hesitant to accept another child that was well beyond the normal age for admittance, Obi-Wan had managed to persuade them in the end.

Nikita did not disappoint. She threw herself into her studies with vigor, and had reached the rank of padawan in only a year. Now she was well on her way to start her trials; she only needed to learn a few more lessons.

Like patience, Obi-Wan thought as he watched the girl skim over the various crates, the purple hue from her lightsaber casting a faint glow over her features.

"I'm not seeing anything out of the ordinary, master. Everything here looks to be standard issue cargo."

"Well my young, impatient padawan, do you really think they would place volatile cargo on the bottom shelves within reach of the entire crew?"

"No," Nikita sighed and gave Obi-Wan an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, master. I got ahead of myself."

"No need to apologize, Nikita. I'm just trying to teach you to be more patient and aware. Now, let's see if we can find a way to get access to those top shelves."

The two Jedi walked down the narrow corridor between crates, looking for a ladder or some other way to access the top shelves. The cargo bay was pitch-black except for their lightsabers and they cautiously made their way forward. Obi-Wan was the first to hear it: a low snarl.

"Nikita, do you hear that," Obi-Wan asked.

"Yes," the girl said, squinting into the dark.

The snarling came closer, followed by the sound of claws and heavy shuffling. The silhouette of a hunched figure became visible, shuffling closer until it reached the edge of light cast by their lightsabers.

Obi-Wan stilled, realizing how dangerous their mission had just become. He reached out, trying to sense just how many of the creatures there were. What he felt troubled him.

"Nikita," he said in a low tone. "Get behind me."

The young padawan gave him a sideways glance and he felt her nervousness. He realized that he hadn't been able to keep the strain from his voice.

"What are these things," she asked as she slowly inched backwards toward him.

"They  _were_  people once. They were infected by a plague; One that exists only on Taris. They're called rakghouls."

"Rakghouls," the girl questioned. "I've only heard about them. I thought they were a myth."

"They're very real," Obi-Wan said, silently willing the girl to move faster. "They're highly contagious. There is a cure for the virus, but it's so uncommon to encounter we don't carry it, so I don't have any antidote with me."

"Which means?" No sooner had the words left the girl's mouth than more of the creatures dropped down from the upper shelves, surrounding them. The one they had encountered first let out a snarl and lunged.

"Don't let them touch you," Obi-Wan shouted as he leapt forward and sliced the creature in half. "Even the slightest scratch can infect you!"

"What! Are you serious," Nikita yelped as she dodged a swing from another rakghoul before slicing its head off. She spun around and dispatched two more before calling back to Obi-Wan.

"That was four! How many of them are there?"

"I counted ten," the Jedi master replied as he leapt over another of the creatures and landed behind it, slicing it straight down the middle. He looked up to see another rakghoul, a bit larger than the rest, sneaking up behind his padawan.

"Behind you!"

The girl jumped out of the way but the rakghoul grabbed her robes, ripping long gashes in the cream colored fabric. She gave a startled cry and Obi-Wan, worried she had been hurt, summoned the force and blew the creature across the cargo bay, slamming it against the far wall and killing it on impact. He rushed to his padawan's side and began looking her over for any wounds.

"It didn't get me, just my robes. Don't worry, master. I was just startled."

The older Jedi let out a sigh of relief. He had grown quite attached to Nikita since he had begun her training. She was only sixteen, and she was already about to become a full-fledged Jedi. He couldn't help but think of her as a daughter, and he would be damned before he let anything happen to her.

The two Jedi looked up to see the remaining rakghouls slowly backing away from them.

"Are they retreating," Nikita asked.

Obi-Wan shook his head. "Rakghouls don't retreat. Something else must be—" The Jedi master was thrown across the room without warning by an unseen force. He hit the opposite wall with a sickening crack and slid down it in a daze.

"Master," Nikita shouted in alarm, pushing herself up to run to him. She hadn't taken more than three strides when a cold, rasping laugh stopped her dead in her tracks. She turned to see a new rakghoul, larger than the rest, walking upright on its hind legs and wearing…something.

Is that armor, she thought as she watched it walk forward, the other rakghouls in the room closing to form ranks on either side of it.

"It can't be," Obi-Wan groaned behind her. "I didn't feel anything through the force!"

They felt it now though: a dark, heavy presence that seemed to make even the air weigh down on them. Nikita felt like she had just walked through a sandstorm and a marsh all at once. She felt grimy and as if she needed a shower as soon as possible.

The hulking creature set its sights on her and began moving forward.

"Nikita," Obi-Wan called. "You mustn't engage it! I'll—ungh!" He had been trying to push himself up, but fell back with a grunt of pain, clutching his side.

"I don't think I have much of a choice," Nikita muttered as she readied her lightsaber. The rakghoul stopped, studying the glowing purple energy before turning and thrusting its fist through a nearby crate. When it withdrew its hand she saw it was now holding a very sharp vibroblade.

She was pretty sure her confidence had just pooled into her feet, but she assumed the Shii-Cho stance nevertheless.

It became apparent immediately that the rakghoul, no matter how advanced it was, wasn't into finesse. It let out a roar and lunged at her, bringing down the vibroblade with sheer, brute strength. The padawan blocked the strike and had to plant her feet to keep from being knocked back.

She drew from the force and pushed back against the rakghoul, causing it to stagger back just as the other creatures lunged at her. In one fluid motion she twirled her lightsaber in a figure eight flourish and dispatched the remaining rakghouls.

"Now it's just you and me, big guy," she said, readying her saber again. The rakghoul let out a low growl and she felt an invisible hand tighten around her neck and pick her up off the ground. She tried to gasp for air but no sound came out. The creature smirked, making its features even more ghastly, and squeezed its hand tighter, causing the pressure to increase to an unbearable level. The padawan clawed at her throat, trying in a desperate attempt to get air.

"Nikita!" Obi-Wan's voice sounded miles away and she tried to focus on it even as her vision began to tunnel. She heard her master's lightsaber ignite and then her vision was filled with nothing but blue as the guardian's lightsaber went twirling past her face and took off the creature's arm before boomeranging back to its master. She fell to the floor coughing and gasping as the rakghoul roared in pain over her. A clawed foot caught her in the side and kicked her onto her back in time for her to see the vibroblade on a downward swing toward her mid-section. She managed to roll out of the way and pull her lightsaber to her, slashing up in a lilac arc. She felt her saber hit home and the rakghoul let out a wet gurgle as its torso separated from its hips and toppled to the floor.

Master and padawan sat and stared at each other, trying to catch their breath.

"What was that thing," Nikita panted after several minutes. Obi-Wan slid down the wall from the standing position he had forced himself into earlier. Nikita picked herself up from the floor and moved to her master's side. She moved his hand away from his side and pressed her fingers into the damaged area as gently as she could. It still wasn't enough, however, as Obi-Wan sucked in a sharp breath and grimaced.

"You have two cracked ribs," the padawan stated in a calm voice. She placed her hand flat on his side and closed her eyes, focusing the force through her fingertips and into Obi-Wan's damaged ribs. She heard him suck in another breath as his ribs mended under her concentration. When she was certain he was well enough to walk she backed away and found him watching her.

"You've been spending time with Vokara Che again, I see."

Nikita shrugged. "Just some simple healing techniques I picked up. You should be well enough to walk now, but take it easy."

Obi-Wan rolled his eyes as he pushed himself up to his feet. The girl spoke as though what she had just done was taught to younglings on their first day of training. In reality it took years to master the healing arts. The body wasn't a simple subject to manipulate.

"Well I don't know what that thing was, to answer your earlier question, but I doubt our little fiasco went unnoticed by the crew. Let's—" The Jedi master didn't get to finish before the door to the cargo bay slid open.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I own nothing from the Star Wars franchise.

Chapter Three

Nikita and Obi-Wan stood side-by-side, handcuffed and surrounded by at least fifty Weequay pirates all pointing blasters at the two Jedi's heads. The captain paced in front of them, holding their lightsabers as if he were weighing them. Behind him the stars flew past the window in streaks as the ship moved through hyperspace.

"So, you break into  _my_  ship and destroy  _my_  precious cargo! Do you have any idea how many credits I'm out now?" He turned on them, studying both Jedi closely. "But of course you don't care. You're Jedi! Money means nothing to you people!"

He walked over to Obi-Wan and walked full circle around him.

"I think you'll fetch a nice ransom from the Republic. After all, a strong Jedi such as yourself must be quite valuable to the war effort." He turned his attention to Nikita, reaching out and grabbing her chin to turn her head this way and that, scrutinizing her. "But you my dear, I'm afraid you'll have to go to the slave market. You simply won't fetch as much being ransomed to the Jedi."

Nikita growled and jerked her head out of the pirates grip. "You're in for a rude awakening if you think you're going to sell me as a slave!"

Obi-Wan cleared his throat and shot Nikita a look telling her to be quiet. The padawan opened her mouth again to protest but the Jedi master raised an eyebrow, further warning her to keep silent. She huffed and glared straight ahead.

The captain watched this exchange in silent amusement. When it became apparent that no more was going to take place between the two Jedi he turned to his nearest crew member.

"Escort our esteemed guests to our most hospitable jail cells."

The crewman nodded and motioned with his blaster for the two to move. Before the door closed the captain called out, "Be sure to remember the hospitality of Toto Bratro!"

The Jedi were escorted down to the holding cells, uncuffed, and none too gently shoved inside.

"Enjoy your stay," the pirate said with a sneer and walked off. Nikita let out a long sigh and ran her hand through her hair before pulling it up into a messy bun.

"So now what? We just sit and wait for them to sell me off and ransom you out?"

"Of course not, but we need to have a good plan for getting out of here. We're vastly outnumbered and unarmed, and they all have blasters."

Silence fell between them as they both tried to think of some means of escape. Nikita began pacing, and on her third rotation she noticed a camera in the upper left corner of the room. She watched it for a while, formulating a plan in her mind, then turned so her back was to the camera. Obi-Wan saw the look on her face but only raised an eyebrow as she bent down and pulled a small rectangular object from the inside of her boot. The object was silver and looked to be a small datapad of some sort, but the master Jedi had never seen his padawan use it before. He watched as she tapped a few codes in and then saw the security camera power down. She glanced over her shoulder to check the camera and then turned her attention back to the device in her hand. A few more taps and their cell door slid open, and a few more after that had a holomap of the ship floating over the palm of her hand.

"I see Vokara isn't the only one you've been spending time with," Obi-Wan observed. "Where did you learn that?"

"Dead Shot," she answered. "He was showing me some splicing skills last time we were on a mission together. He gave me this miniature data pad that he had modified into a hacking device, but I never thought I would need to use it."

Obi-Wan frowned. Dead Shot was one of the men in Cody's tech specialist group. He had noticed Nikita had begun spending a lot of time with the young clone and suspected that they had become a little closer than was appropriate.

"Yes, you do seem to be spending a lot of time with him as of late," he said, knowing she would pick up on his meaning. To his surprise she laughed.

"Don't worry, master. It's nothing like that. It's more like…like he's a brother I never had. We share a lot of the same interests and that's what helps us get along so well."

Obi-Wan nodded, sensing she was telling the truth.

"Are you able to take control of the ship with that then?"

The padawan shook her head. "I can't gain access to the ships controls. They're too heavily protected. But maybe…" She began tapping on the datapad some more before she smiled. "I can temporarily knock all their defense and weapons systems offline long enough to pull them out of hyperspace."

"Good," the guardian said as he walked out of the cell. "See if you can shut all the lights off as well. We'll have a better advantage in the dark."

"Done," came the padawan's voice as the ships interior went pitch-black.

* * *

"What the hell's goin' on? Why aren't the lights workin'?"

"I dunno! The back-up generators aren't workin' either!"

"Someone get some damn lights on! I can't see a damn thing!"

It was clear that knocking the lights out had brought operations to a screeching halt. Nikita and Obi-Wan made their way through the halls, being careful to avoid any aimless, stumbling pirates trying to find their way around. They had relieved the guards at the entrance of the brig of their blaster pistols, but they were still vastly outnumbered. The plan they had come up with wasn't the greatest, but they didn't have much more choice. When they were one hall away from the bridge Obi-Wan turned to Nikita.

"Are you ready?"

The padawan nodded.

The door to the bridge slid open and Obi-Wan stepped inside. It shut with a hiss and then beeped red to signal it had just locked. No one would be getting in unless they blew it open.

"Farkin, that you? Why'd you lock the door?"

Obi-Wan didn't answer. There were only two other men in the room with the captain, the rest having gone off to try and repair the damage they thought had knocked all their systems offline.

Closing his eyes, Obi-Wan focused on the blasters in the men's hands and pulled them free with a quick tug of the force. One of the pistols flew to his empty hand while the other two clattered at his feet.

"What the—"

"Oi! Where'd my gun go?" As if on cue the lights came back on to reveal the Jedi master with pistols trained on both the pirates and eyes on the captain.

"Well now, Jedi," Captain Toto said as he studied the situation with a calm eye. "It seems the cards are now in your favor. I do happen to notice that your pretty little student is no longer with you. I do hope she isn't trapped out there with all my men. It's been some time since they've had the company of such a pretty girl like herself." He had been hoping to call the Jedi's bluff, but Obi-Wan only furrowed his brow further, letting the captain know that he wasn't fazed by the comment but didn't appreciate it either.

"I'm placing you under arrest, Toto, for the illegal smuggling of restricted biohazards to the Separatist forces."

Toto laughed. "That's quite a mouthful, Jedi. You seem to forget one thing, however. Your guns are trained on my men, not me. I assure you that they won't hesitate to attack the moment you let your guard down, and I know you wouldn't dare shoot an unarmed, defenseless man. Why don't we just call this a noble attempt at saving your precious padawan from a life of slavery and I'll escort you back to your cell."

There was a slight rustle of fabric from behind the captain and a tug on his belt before two blades of azure and amethyst ignited in front of him, forming an X at his throat.

"Sorry to drop in unannounced," Nikita said as the captain glanced up at the now open ventilation shaft above his head. "By all means, please continue with your speech."

"Yes, captain," Obi-Wan chimed in with a small smirk. "I believe you were saying something about holding cells."

* * *

Obi-Wan and Nikita walked off the ship to greet Master Plo Koon. Behind them the entire Weequay pirate band was being escorted from their ship to the holding cells aboard the dungeon ship they were currently on by a group of clone troopers.

"Good work bringing in these pirates," Plo Koon said as he watched Captain Toto shuffle past. "I take it the information about biohazardous material was true then?"

"Yes," Obi-Wan replied. "We were attacked by rakghouls."

"Rakghouls? What could the Separatists possibly want with rakghouls? It's far too dangerous a plague to be used for bio warfare."

"I'm not sure what they intended to do, but what I find more troubling is we faced one rakghoul in particular that seemed very intelligent and was strong in the dark side."

Plo Koon glanced at Nikita as Obi-Wan said this, tapping a finger on his jaw in thought.

"That is troubling to hear. I seem to recall some archives at the Jedi Temple describing creatures similar, but they are ancient. No one has seen anything like it for hundreds of years."

"Well whatever it was is dead now. We can only hope there aren't more of them," Obi-Wan said as they began walking to the bridge.

"Did the captain mention how he and his men managed to capture such a dangerous creature?"

"No," Nikita answered. "Though I did overhear one of the men say that it killed almost twenty men when they were trying to capture it."

"A hefty price for one creature," the Kel Dor responded. "But at any rate they're done with their smuggling days. I'm afraid they weren't the only ones involved in this operation. We've recently gotten word that a man by the name of Voss Brecker was the informant and go between for this deal. What's more, we believe he's acquired several top secret plans detailing strategic Republic troop movements across key worlds and intends to sell them to the highest bidder."

"Which of course would be the Separatists," Obi-Wan said with a sigh.

"Precisely. He was last sighted on Coruscant. Your ship is being prepped for departure as we speak."

"Well then, no sense keeping him waiting," the guardian said as he nodded at his padawan. The two bade farewell to the Kel Dor master and headed for the hangar bay.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Four

Nikita was fighting someone. She couldn't make out whom, but they carried no lightsaber. Patches of green and white flashed around her as they fought. Whoever it was was good. She was dishing out everything she had against them but they were always able to counter or dodge her attacks. A well placed kick sent her lightsaber flying out of her hand and knocked her off balance. She hit the ground, knocking the breath out of her, and was slow to push herself up. There was a click and she looked up to find herself staring down the barrel of a blaster rifle, the figure behind it nothing more than a shadowy outline. She watched their finger squeeze down on the trigger and the blaster went off with a crack.

The young Jedi woke with a start, quickly scanning the room for the shadowy figure. She let out a breath when she realized it had just been a dream and let herself fall back down on her mat. The ship was quiet except for the occasional creak and groan of the hull as the vessel made its way through hyperspace.

Nikita closed her eyes and let the dream play out in her mind again and again. It was so vivid; she had felt everything right down to the breeze that was stirred up when her opponent had missed a punch to her face. Her thoughts kept centering on the assailant's helmet. She could tell they were wearing armor, but she had never seen armor like that. Something about the shape of that helmet was so familiar to her though. It was odd.

Knowing that she wasn't going to get anywhere on her own, Nikita left her room to find Obi-Wan. If anyone could help her decipher the dream it was him.

"Hm, I can't think of anyone who would match the description of your vision," Obi-Wan said, stroking his beard in thought. "But I wouldn't dismiss it. The Force gave you this vision for a reason, and considering what happened in it I think you should be a bit more cautious on this next mission."

"Yes master. I intend to," Nikita replied.

"We're only a few hours from Coruscant. Brecker's more than likely planning on meeting his contact soon, but he won't be expecting us."

"Do you have a plan for catching him?"

The Jedi master nodded. "Brecker is looking for a buyer. If we pose as an interested party we might be able to set up a meeting with him."

Obi-Wan watched a mischievous spark flare up in his padawan's eye.

"And since he doesn't know we're onto him he won't know we're from the Republic," Nikita said with a grin. "We'll be able to arrest him and not risk getting into a fight with the Separatists!"

"Precisely," Obi-Wan replied. "Now go and get ready. We'll have to leave the minute we land if we're to catch up to Brecker."

* * *

The lower levels of Coruscant were nothing like the gleaming upper city. Clubs and bars could be seen on almost every block and street vendors lined the spaces in between. The catwalk style streets were crowded with citizens who had just gotten off work and were headed to either their homes or to get a drink. Sky cars flew past both above and below the streets, adding to the rush hour atmosphere.

Nikita stood next to Obi-Wan and studied the crowd. She had gotten a new cloak upon arriving and the cream colored fabric once again draped over her head and shoulders. That, mixed with the natural tan of her skin gave her an exotic look that had more than a few heads turning in her direction. She shrunk farther back into the shadow of the canopy they were standing under and pulled her robe closer around herself. Obi-Wan had noticed the attention his padawan was attracting and quickly steered her into a nearby alley and out of sight.

"I know you just got this," he said, pointing at her cloak. "But I'm afraid it's gaining you too much attention. You'll have to leave it behind."

"Very well," Nikita sighed as she pulled the cloak off and laid it over a nearby trashcan, knowing it wouldn't be there when they returned. Underneath her cloak she wore a navy blue heather tank top and a sleeveless knee length cream colored vest that was loosely fastened in the front by two leather buckle straps. A brown leather belt, from which her lightsaber hung, was buckled around her hips. She wore tight dark brown pants and knee high taupe boots. Brown leather bands adorned both her upper arms, three on the left and two on the right, and brown leather driving gloves covered her hands. She pulled her lightsaber from her belt and slipped it into her boot so it would be out of sight.

"Well," she asked, looking up at Obi-Wan. "Do I look more inconspicuous now?"

"Not by much," he replied in a wry tone, looking her over. "But it'll have to do. Now let's go."

They went into several cantinas along the street, dropping hints that they were looking to buy sensitive intel. Obi-Wan had told Nikita that if they asked around enough Brecker would come to them. Sure enough, after they left their fourth bar they were beckoned into an alley next door. They found themselves staring down at a shifty looking Patrolian.

"You the ones askin' around about intel," he asked in a rasping, warbled voice.

"Maybe," Obi-Wan replied, raising an eyebrow. "Might I ask who wants to know?"

There was a slight rustle and a Weequay and a Selkath popped up from behind several trashcans and pointed blasters at the two Jedi.

"I'm the one askin' the questions," the Patrolian warbled. "Now, who you workin' for?"

"Who do you think," Nikita asked, crossing her arms. "The Separatists, of course."

"Don't get smart with me, little girl," the Patrolian snapped. "You never can be too careful. You could've been Jedi!" He squinted up at them with his beady little eyes. "So, what kind of information you lookin' for?"

"We're trying to gain an edge on the battlefield," Obi-Wan said in a smooth tone.

The Patrolian let out a raspy little laugh and rubbed his hands together. "Well you're in luck! My boss just so happens to have recently acquired some information that might be just what you need!" He waved his hands at his two accomplices, signaling for them to lower their blasters as he said, "All right, follow me."

The two Jedi followed him down the alley, around the corner and into one of the dingiest, creepy, hole-in-the-wall cantinas Nikita had ever seen. The Patrolian led them up to the bar before turning to them.

"Wait here," he said before disappearing into the back of the bar. Obi-Wan and Nikita turned to the waiting bartender and Obi-Wan turned him down with a flick of his hand.

"Do you want me to go over and try to see if it's Brecker he's contacting," Nikita asked. Obi-Wan shook his head.

"It's too risky," the Jedi master murmured so only she could hear. "The two bodyguards are at the door, no doubt keeping an eye on us. We're just going to have to play this by ear."

They hadn't been waiting for more than ten minutes when the Patrolian returned.

"You're in luck," he said with a sly smile. "My boss has agreed to meet you in an hour. He'll be at the spaceport, dock 13-A. Don't be late! He thinks he's being followed and he wants to get off world as soon as possible!"

"Of course," Obi-Wan said as he and Nikita pushed away from the bar. "Thank you for your time."

* * *

The two Jedi stepped out onto the circular platform of dock 13-A. By this time evening had fallen and the sun was almost set, casting the entire dock into orange hues. They appeared to be alone, the only other things on the dock being a few shipping crates and a small freighter docked on the far side.

"I thought we were supposed to meet Brecker here," Nikita said as she scanned the area, searching for any sign of movement.

"We still don't know if it's even Brecker we're here to meet," Obi-Wan replied. "And did you really think we could trust them to do what they said?"

"I suppose not. So, should we expect a trap?"

"More than likely."

The two of them cautiously walked farther out onto the platform, expecting to be ambushed at any moment. When nothing happened they exchanged confused looks. Nikita was about to speak when a loud scream of "HELP ME!" rang out. The two Jedi turned to see a tall, wiry man running toward them from the entrance of the dock.

"Isn't that Brecker," Nikita asked.

"Yes, it is," Obi-Wan replied, raising an eyebrow at the man barreling toward them. "But what's he running from?"

As if in answer to his question they saw a cord wrap around the man's legs and he face-planted onto the ground. Nikita gave a slight grimace upon hearing the crunch of Brecker's face meeting the metal plating of the platform and looked past him to see a figure running after Brecker. She felt a chill go down her spine. It was a bounty hunter, and their green armor and white undersuit immediately brought her vision from earlier to the forefront of her mind. The bounty hunter ran up until they were ten feet from Brecker and skidded to a halt.

"Kenobi. What are  _you_  doing here?" The voice was male and sounded young, with an accent that reminded Nikita of the clone troopers. She looked over at Obi-Wan, wondering how her master knew this hunter, to see him frowning at the young Mandalorian.

"Boba Fett," Obi-Wan finally responded. "It would seem we're both here for the same reason."

Brecker had managed to pry his face up from the floor plating and was watching the exchange through puffy eyes and a broken, bleeding nose.

"Wait, are you two Jedi," he asked in a frantic voice, looking between Obi-Wan and Nikita. "Please, take me with you! I'll do anything!"

"Shut up," Fett snarled. "You aren't going anywhere with them."

"Now wait a minute," Nikita said, stepping forward. "He's wanted for selling confidential Republic information. I would think that would give us more right to him than whatever measly bounty  _you're_  trying to collect!"

"You don't have a right to anything, Jedi," Fett scoffed. "He's my target and I got to him first."

"While that may be true," Obi-Wan chimed in, stepping forward to stand beside Nikita. "I'm afraid Brecker knows too much sensitive information for us to let you take him. We can't risk it."

"Well then you're going to have to get through me first," Fett shouted, drawing his blaster.

Obi-Wan and Nikita jumped out of the way as the bounty hunter opened fire. Nikita looked up from the crates she had dodged behind to see that Fett had focused his attention on Obi-Wan. The older Jedi was feigning a retreat, leading the bounty hunter across the platform and away from Brecker. She waited until they were at enough of a distance that Fett wouldn't notice what she was doing before running over to Brecker. The information broker had managed to twist around and was frantically trying to untangle the grappling cord from around his legs.

"Ah ah, I think it's best if you stay tied up," Nikita said as she slapped a pair of stasis cuffs around his wrists. She picked him up under the arms and dragged him over to the shipping crates, ignoring his explosion of insults, expletives, and demands to let him go. Once she managed to get him to the crates she propped him up and placed another pair of stasis cuffs around his ankles.

"What the hell, lady! I'm not going to run away, okay!"

"Well now I know that for sure," Nikita said with a smile. "Besides, you said you wanted to go with us. You said you'd do anything, so here you are. Now be good and stay put."

She turned around to check on Obi-Wan. The guardian had led Fett all the way across the platform and was currently on the defensive with his lightsaber. Drawing her own weapon, Nikita ran over to join the battle. When she was halfway across the platform she saw Fett dodge a strike from Obi-Wan and take to the air with his jet pack. He pulled his blaster back and extended his other arm, shooting a stream of fire at the Jedi master. Obi-Wan jumped up, aiming to evade the hunter's fire and land behind him, but Fett flew in front of him and kicked him square in the jaw.

Nikita watched with wide eyes as her master fell to the ground and slowly sat up, rubbing his jaw. She saw his eyes go to the bounty hunter and narrow as the flamethrower was pointed in his direction again. Knowing Obi-Wan wouldn't be able to dodge the flames this time, Nikita reached out with the force and picked up a nearby crate, hurling it at the bounty hunter. The crate hit Fett in the back, breaking his jet pack and sending him tumbling forward, crashing into the ground. The young padawan ran over to Obi-Wan, helping him up off the ground.

"Are you alright," she asked.

"I've had worse," the guardian answered, working his jaw. "Thankfully it's not broken."

They were interrupted by a grunt and both turned to see the young Mandalorian hunter pushing himself up. Obi-Wan sighed and started to step forward but Nikita stopped him with a hand on his arm.

"Let me, master. Tend to your jaw," she said as she walked in front of him and ignited her lightsaber. She saw the T-shaped visor turn and study the amethyst colored beam before it shifted back to her and she heard a low growl.

Without warning the bounty hunter leapt to the side, tucking into a roll, and grabbed his blaster where it had landed. He came up shooting and Nikita quickly blocked the blaster bolts with several flourishes. She charged him head-on, knowing that she would have to disarm him if they were going to subdue him. Fett fired off several more shots and she deflected them all before closing the distance with a leap. She deactivated her lightsaber and grabbed the muzzle of his blaster, twisting underneath his arm and forcing him to let go of the gun before she broke his arm. She broke away from him and threw the blaster behind her, well out of his reach, before clipping her lightsaber back on her belt.

"Let's make this a fair fight," she said as she dropped into a defensive stance.

"Tch, 'Jedi' and 'fair' don't go together," Fett replied as he mimicked her stance. They began circling each other and Nikita shot a brief glance over Fett's shoulder at Obi-Wan. The Jedi master was observing the scene with crossed arms and a furrowed brow, but it was clear that he wasn't going to intervene unless she needed help. She turned her attention back to the bounty hunter but was surprised when Obi-Wan's voice rang out across the platform.

"Remember your vision, Nikita."

That made her falter a bit, realizing she had unintentionally set herself up for the events in her vision to play out. It was too late now, however, so she had no choice but to go along with it. After a few more minutes of studying the bounty hunter's movements it was clear to Nikita that he was waiting on her to make the first move. She thought about trying to goad him into moving first, but though he was a bit brash he wasn't stupid by any means. It would be up to her.

Please don't let this get me shot, she thought as she charged at him. Fett read this as a head-on attack and braced himself, ready to block her punch. Just as she reached him she dropped into a slide and came up behind him, aiming an elbow for the small of his back where his armor ended. He spun around and caught her elbow, forcing her back and aiming a punch at her head. She barely dodged it and felt the breeze stir stray stands of her hair as his fist flew past her face. She recovered quickly and grabbed his arm, spinning around and using his forward momentum to flip him over her shoulder. He landed hard enough on his back that she heard the grunt as all the breath was knocked out of him. When he made no move to get up she started to back away, thinking she had won. Quick as lightning he swung his leg out and knocked hers out from under her. The back of her head smacked into the ground as she fell and she felt pain bloom across her skull. Through her blurry vision she saw Fett get up and run toward the center of the platform where she had thrown his blaster. She pushed herself up and ran after him, forcing herself to ignore the pain in her head.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Obi-Wan start toward the bounty hunter and picked up her pace, determined to get there first. She did, and right in time to get a blaster stuck in her face. She managed to duck down in time to evade the shots and drew her lightsaber, swinging it up in an arc in an attempt to cut Fett's blaster in half. He jumped back, dodging the swing, and kicked her in her shoulder. She staggered back and didn't have time to recover before he kicked her lightsaber from her hand and swept her feet out from under her once again. Her head jolted from the landing, causing a new wave of pain to flash across her skull. She tried to suck in a breath but her lungs refused to respond. She heard a click and froze, looking up to find herself staring down the barrel of Fett's blaster. The hunter was looking down at her, the light from the setting sun glinting off his armor.

Nikita felt her heart sink as she realized her vision was coming true. She lifted her eyes from the muzzle of the blaster to the T-shaped visor just beyond. There was still something so familiar about it…

Her eyes widened as something clicked in her mind. A memory surfaced of that day in the desert when she had woken up and seen someone standing over her. It had been  _him_.

Boba Fett was the one who had saved her.


	5. Chapter 5

I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Five

Nikita lay there unmoving, too in shock at the newfound realization that the boy about to kill her was the same one who had saved her several years ago. She watched Fett's finger squeeze down on the trigger and closed her eyes, waiting to hear the crack of the rifle. Instead she heard a loud yell and the hum of a lightsaber. She opened her eyes to find Obi-Wan's lightsaber a few inches from her face and Fett several feet away, staring down the Jedi. She noticed a glowing cut now running along the surface of the bounty hunters right arm guard and realized he had come very close to losing a limb.

Fett fired off several rounds at Obi-Wan, but the guardian blocked them with ease and threw the boy back with a force push.

"Are you alright," he asked Nikita, reaching out and helping her up.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just hit the back of my head pretty hard, that's all."

There was a slight waver in her voice and Obi-Wan shot her a look telling her he didn't buy that in the slightest. Before she could say more Fett was back on his feet and Obi-Wan was running across the platform to meet him. Nikita stood there, watching her master exchange blows with the hunter. She took a shaky breath and clenched her fists to try and stop them from trembling. This whole ordeal had unnerved her more than she cared to admit. Even though it was coincidence that she had run into the bounty hunter again, it was still eerie.

Movement from the corner of her eye caught her attention and she looked over to see Brecker squirming around. He still had Fett's grappling cord wrapped around his legs, but he had somehow managed to stand despite that and the stasis cuffs on his wrists and ankles. Nikita watched as he struggled to try and pull something out of his boot and her eyes narrowed.

What is he up to, she thought as she began walking toward him. She had only taken two steps when Brecker yanked his hand back with a triumphant "Ha!" and she saw the glint of a blaster barrel in the fading light. The padawan drew her lightsaber and began sprinting forward, expecting Brecker to begin shooting at all of them. Instead she saw him take careful aim at Fett, waiting for the boy to be clear in his sights. He didn't have to wait long as Fett dodged a swing from Obi-Wan and unknowingly placed himself with his unarmored side to Brecker.

Nikita closed the last few feet with a leap, landing at Fett's back and deflecting the bolts that would have torn through his undersuit. One of the bolts ricocheted back and hit Brecker in the wrist, causing him to let out a howl of pain and drop his blaster. The padawan let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding, but she tensed again when she noticed how quiet it was. There were now no sounds of fighting behind her and she became acutely aware of the fact that she was standing with her back to a bounty hunter that had already tried to kill her once.

She turned to find herself staring into a T-shaped visor only a few inches from her face. Neither of them moved for what felt like an eternity, but then a groan broke the silence. Nikita looked past Fett to see Obi-Wan picking himself up off the ground from where the hunter had kicked him. Without warning Fett burst into motion, shoving her back and sprinting toward the edge of the platform. He quickly punched in a code on his wrist pad and a large ship, one Nikita had never seen before, rose up alongside the platform. As he jumped on the loading ramp he paused and she saw that T-shaped visor turn in her direction for a split second, then he was gone.

* * *

Nikita looked up from her mat at the sound of her room door opening to see Obi-Wan.

"I thought you might like to know that Brecker was just picked up by the transport freighter," he said. "He's on his way to join our friend Toto."

"I'm glad. Every time he saw me he did nothing but whine that I had ruined his quick draw hand," the padawan replied with an eye roll.

"Yes, well he brought that on himself when he tried shooting at you," Obi-Wan said in a wry tone. "But you should know that's not the only reason I came here." The Jedi master walked in and sat down adjacent to his padawan.

"We need to talk," he said in a serious tone.

"About," Nikita asked, burying her face into her drawn up knees. She had a feeling she knew though.

"I think you know," Obi-Wan replied with a frown. "Throwing yourself in harm's way to protect a bounty hunter who just tried to kill you then letting him escape? He's wanted by the Republic as well, you know."

"I know, master," Nikita sighed. "It's just that…" she trailed off, not sure if she should even tell Obi-Wan why she had done what she had. It did seem reckless looking back on it.

"Tell me, Nikita. I can sense it's troubling you."

She shifted to look over at him, judging from his expression that he wasn't going to budge until she told him what was going on. The padawan sighed in defeat and turned her attention to a very interesting spot on the wall in front of her.

"Do you remember the vision I had," she asked.

"Yes, and it appears that it was warning you about our run-in with Boba Fett. Might I add that that vision came uncomfortably close to being fulfilled all the way through."

"I know, and that's because I remembered something as he was about to shoot me. It…it caught me off guard." She looked back over at Obi-Wan, her tone one of complete seriousness now. "Do you remember when you first found me? I told you I remembered waking up and seeing someone standing over me in the desert, right?"

"Yes. I seem to recall the doctor talking about that as well. He said they appeared to be a mercenary…" Obi-Wan trailed off, his eyebrows going up as he pieced together what he was being told. "You don't think it was Boba Fett that found you and brought you to that hospital, do you?"

"I don't think; I know," Nikita said. "I didn't realize it until I was looking up at him with the sun over his shoulder."

Obi-Wan was quiet for several minutes, stroking his beard in thought. "Even if it  _was_  Boba Fett that saved you that day you were still very reckless. He would have shot you, given the chance. I've dealt with Fett before. He isn't exactly a fan of the Jedi."

"Well obviously. He's a bounty hunter."

"It's more than that," Obi-Wan replied. "I first met Boba when I traveled to Kamino to investigate the makings of the clone army. He was there with his father, Jango."

"Was he a bounty hunter too?"

"Yes, and he was being paid a lot of money to be the template for the clone army. When I arrived I also found out that he had made one special request: an unaltered clone to raise as his son."

"Boba Fett?"

"Yes," the guardian nodded.

"Boba Fett's a clone? Just like Cody, or Deadshot?"

"Yes. I didn't pay him much mind then, but he turned out to become a formidable enemy later on."

"What made him start disliking Jedi?"

"The Battle of Geonosis," Obi-Wan replied in a grave tone. "Boba witnessed his father go up against Master Windu, and Windu decapitated him. It was in self-defense, but to a child those things don't matter. That day Boba saw nothing more than the murder of his father."

The Jedi master stopped and gave the padawan time to process all that he had just told her.

"My gosh," she said after a few minutes of silence. "I can't say I blame him for hating Jedi."

"Really? Do you hate all Sand People because a small group attacked your family?"

"I've made my peace with that, master and you know that," she said in a firm tone. "No, I don't hate all Sand People because of the actions of a select few. That doesn't mean I have to like them, however."

"A valid argument, padawan. My point is that Boba had a bit harder of a time getting past the death of his father. He was driven by revenge, and even went so far as to make several attempts on Master Windu's life, though I will admit his heart didn't seem to be into the methods his accomplices preferred to use."

"So what happened to make him stop going after Master Windu?"

"Time in jail, apparently. He was released a while back, however, and no one has heard anything about him until now. I can only guess that he decided Windu wasn't worth his time anymore." Obi-Wan reached over and placed his hand on Nikita's shoulder. "While it may have been him that day in the desert it's in the past now. Be thankful to him that you're alive to see the rest of your life fulfilled, but leave it at that. Fett hates Jedi, and he would be more likely to shoot first and ask questions later if you were to try and find him. Focus on your studies and training now. You have a lot to prepare for when we get back to the temple."

* * *

Author's Note: I give my apologies for the short length of this chapter!


	6. Chapter 6

I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Six

Obi-Wan made his way up the steps leading to the entrance of the Jedi Temple. Mace Windu stood waiting for him, looking out across Coruscant's breathtaking skyline to the plumes of billowing smoke rising over the airstrip. It was the only reminder that what was left of General Grievous' ship, The Invisible Hand, was currently in a smoldering scrapheap on the runway.

"So Grievous ran again, did he," Mace asked, turning to Obi-Wan as he approached.

"Yes. He's nothing if not consistent," Obi-Wan replied in a weary tone.

"Well he can't hide forever. With Count Dooku dead he'll be our primary target. This war won't be finished until Grievous is behind bars."

"I couldn't agree more, my friend. I'm just as ready as you are for this war to be finished."

The two master Jedi fell into small talk as they made their way into the Jedi Temple. When they reached the stairs leading up to the council chamber Obi-Wan stopped and turned to Windu with a grave look.

"I have to deliver my report to the council, but before I do I must know, how is she, Mace?"

The sentinel clapped a reassuring hand on his friend's shoulder upon seeing the worry in his eyes. "She's being discharged today. She's down in the infirmary getting her last check-up. I spoke with her this morning. She's still taking it hard, but she insisted on being redeployed as soon as she was discharged."

"She's a strong girl," Obi-Wan said with a smile. "I'll go by and see her after I deliver my report."

"Do that. I'll send word down that you'll be stopping by."

Obi-Wan stepped inside the doorway to the Halls of Healing to see countless rows of white hospital beds. Most were empty, but a few had occupants, including a youngling who was getting an earful of a speech about how training sabers weren't toys from Vokara Che. The Jedi master scanned the room until his eyes landed upon a young woman pulling her dark brown hair up into a messy bun. He smiled and quickly walked over to her cot.

Nikita had just finished tying her hair back when a pair of brown boots appeared in front of her. She looked up and broke into a wide grin at the sight of Obi-Wan.

"Master!" She jumped down from the bed and gave him a big hug. "I'm glad you came by before I left."

"It's been a while," Obi-Wan said as he pulled her back to look her over. She saw his smile turn a little bit sad when he looked at her eyes and she knew he saw the gold flecks now mixed in with the natural dark brown of her irises, a permanent scar and reminder of what had happened on Korriban.

"I'm okay now, master. It took a long time, but my wounds have healed."

"Your physical ones," the guardian replied. "But how are you doing, really?"

Nikita looked over at Master Che, who was still lecturing the youngling, before responding to Obi-Wan.

"I still have nightmares sometimes," she said quietly. "I can still see their faces; like it's burned into my mind…But Master Che said the worst of the visions should be over. Now all I have to do is learn to live with what I've done."

Obi-Wan placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up at him.

"No one blames you for what you did, Nikita. You had no choice. You tried to save them. It wasn't your fault." The Jedi master was met only with silence and he patted her shoulder before giving her another smile. "You're a strong girl. You'll overcome this, but it will take time. Where are they deploying you?"

"Felucia," Nikita said, relieved to change the subject. "I'm going to be cleaning up some droid battalions that were left over from the battle."

"Well I'm glad I got to see you before you left. I still have work to do, but we should catch up on our next leave."

"Sounds good, master. I'd better be going. Don't want to delay takeoff." She gave him another quick hug before starting for the doorway.

"Nikita," Obi-Wan called out as she was almost to the door. "May the Force be with you."

"You as well, master," she responded with a grin and a wave.

* * *

Felucia was a beautiful planet, but right now all the vegetation was becoming a huge nuisance. Nikita pushed a leafy branch out of her face for what felt like the hundredth time and heard a muffled curse behind her when she released it, indicating it had just smacked her clone commander in the face.

"Oops, sorry Clear Cut. You okay?"

"Fine, general," Clear Cut responded in a clipped, irritated tone. "My helmet took the brunt of it."

Nikita turned back around, unable to keep a small smirk from her lips. Though it had been an accident, Clear Cut had kind of deserved that branch to the face. She had had nothing but arguments with the clone commander since they'd first met; starting with him flat out telling her he didn't trust her judgment calls because he'd had more field experience. While this was a blatant disrespect of the chain of command in the army, the Jedi knight also knew that if she couldn't gain Clear Cut and his men's approval she wouldn't stand a chance with any unit even if she requested a reassign.

Clear Cut was known for being one of the tougher aspects of Jango Fett. He had inherited the bounty hunter's ruthless approach to getting jobs done and had little patience for diplomacy or humor, or being hit in the face by a branch.

In short: Clear Cut was an ass.

Nikita pushed another branch out of her way, holding it a bit longer to make sure her "illustrious" commander didn't get hit in the face again. Upon letting the plant go she turned her attention back to their path to find a huge clearing littered with broken flora.

"Looks like we've found their trail, general," Clear Cut said, pointing in the direction the trail of destruction led. "Only the tinnies would carve a mile-wide path leading right to them."

"At least now it'll be easier to find them. Commander, tell your men to split up on either side of the clearing. We'll continue to follow along through the foliage so they won't see us coming."

"Yes, general," Clear Cut replied, though when he turned away she heard grumbling. She watched his helmet tilt to the side, indicating he was relaying her orders to his men. Turning back in the direction they were tracking she walked a few feet away and closed her eyes, focusing on her surroundings. Her meditation was soon shattered, however, by the sound of a blaster being cocked. She turned back to Clear Cut, thinking he had spotted a droid patrol, only to find his blaster aimed at her. The knight froze, looking up into the dark visor for some explanation. She received none. Two more troopers walked up on either side of the commander and leveled their weapons at her.

"Sorry,  _general_ ," Clear Cut said in a flat tone as the crack of the first rifle went off.

Nikita didn't even feel the shot hit her as she ran forward, her mind already switched into survival mode. The two troopers on either side of Clear Cut went down fast, felled by deflected blaster shots. The clone commander was a different story. He dodged her first swing and began yelling into his comm before she could stop him.

"All troopers fire on my position  _now_! Kill the—" The second swing silenced him. No sooner had he fallen than a storm of blaster shots came flying through the foliage, hitting everything including her.

She staggered in pain as several of the shots ripped through her midsection. She knew she didn't stand a chance against that many troopers; her only option was to run. The Jedi took off at a dead sprint through the thick foliage, pure adrenaline being the only thing keeping her going. The blaster bolts kept coming, but she eventually heard the shooting being replaced by shouting. She pushed herself to keep running until she couldn't hear the soldiers anymore before stopping to lean against a tree. It wasn't long before every breath caused her to wince in pain and she looked down at her body, only now remembering she had been shot. Her breath caught at the sight that met her. It was worse than she had first thought.

The first shot had hit her in the leg, but at least four others had hit various spots on her upper torso. None were bleeding profusely, so she knew no arteries had been hit, but judging from how blurry her vision was getting several of the shots had hit  _something_  important.

"Damn it," she breathed, wincing once again. She didn't have the strength or the time to try and heal herself. She was also trapped on the planet now. Her only chance was to try and find one of the locals and hope they wouldn't turn her over to the troopers. Her mind was racing with all of these thoughts as she tried to gather her remaining strength and continue walking. She had just begun to wonder what had made her troops betray her when she heard the distinct sound of a twig snapping under a boot. Her head snapped in the direction the sound had come from; her eyes scanning the area for any signs of movement. When she didn't see anything she pushed away from the tree as quietly as she could, intending to put as much distance between herself and whoever had made the noise. She only made it three steps before pain shot through her abdomen and she doubled over, trying in vain to hide her sharp gasp. A sudden wave of dizziness overwhelmed her and her next step faltered; her injured leg collapsing under her weight.

The sound of footsteps was unmistakable now, and they were getting closer. Whoever it was no doubt had heard her fall and was moving in for an easy kill. The injured knight tried to get up but her vision was fading and her arms refused to support her. She heard the footsteps come to a halt right beside her before her body gave up its fight to remain conscious.

* * *

Nikita woke up to the sound of a ragged scream ripping through her throat. All around her the force echoed with despair and emptiness where there had once been the chorus of all her fellow Jedi's life chords. They were dead, or dying. She could feel them still crying out for help before being abruptly and violently cut off. A sob built up in her throat but she forced it back, only allowing a low whine to escape. She needed to get out and try to help, not sit and cry. The knight sat up a bit too fast and let out a grunt as pain shot through her torso. She had forgotten about getting shot, but she was surprised to see bandages through the blaster holes in her clothes. She moved to examine the dressings but realized something was restraining her hands. She looked over and felt a chill run down her spine.

She was handcuffed to a bed.

For the first time since she'd awoken Nikita actually took in her surroundings. She was in a ship, but it wasn't one she recognized. The rumbling of the engine was deeper than any she was familiar with. The area she was currently in appeared to be living quarters. The bed she was handcuffed to was only a fold-out cot from the wall. At the end of the cot was a small unit for storing and cooking food. Directly across from the cot was a bench and beside that was a workbench. The far wall held the door to a small lift that she guessed led to the cargo hold. Behind her there was another door that was currently locked. While she was examining the sparse, well-kept space the door behind her blinked green and slid open. Nikita's head snapped up to meet a very familiar T-shaped visor.

Boba Fett.

The bounty hunter moved over to the bench without a word and sat down, that dark visor settling on her once more. She stared back, but it was a lot harder to gauge someone's intentions when you couldn't see their eyes. It became clear that he was more than content sitting in silence and watching her fidget. She would have to make the first move.

"Where am I," she asked.

At first he didn't answer, and right as she was beginning to think he would remain silent he spoke.

"Slave I. My ship." The same voice, just a bit deeper, so she at least knew she was dealing with the same person she'd fought on Coruscant. The same one who'd almost killed her.

"Why did you save me?"

"I didn't."

The knight couldn't stop her brow from rising. "You didn't save me? Then what do you call it?"

"Insurance."

"Insurance," she echoed.

"You were going to die. I need you alive."

"Really? Why is that?"

Fett took a bit to answer this one and Nikita wasn't sure if he was toying with her or if he was genuinely contemplating his answer.

"I needed to know something," he said at last.

To say she was surprised was an understatement. Of all the things she had been expecting him to respond with,  _that_  had not been it. She remained silent, however, not letting her curiosity show.

"Two years ago, on Coruscant, you jumped in front of me to keep me from getting shot. Why?"

She had glanced down at the floor while he had been talking, but now her eyes flicked back to his visor. He wanted to know why she had saved him. She contemplated lying, remembering what Obi-Wan had said about the hunter, but decided to tell him the truth.

"Do you remember finding a little girl in the desert of Tatooine around six years ago? You took her to a hospital in Mos Espa." Silence fell between them as she let him process this.

"You were that girl." It wasn't a question.

"Yes. I recognized you on Coruscant."

Fett stood up and headed back towards the door to the cockpit.

"Wait," Nikita called when she realized he wasn't going to say more. "That's it? At least tell me why you saved me!"

"I already told you: I need you alive."

"Why," she shouted. The screeching wound in the force was making her feel numb and she was tired of his elusive answers.

The hunter paused in the doorway and turned to her. "When the bounty posts I'm going to turn you in to the Empire. I'm sure they'll be eager to get ahold of any remaining Jedi. As for my inquiry, I merely wanted to know your motives. You're naïve if you thought it was anything more. If I had known that girl in the desert was going to become a Jedi I would've left you to die." With that he was gone, the door locking behind him.

Nikita sat motionless, staring at the door where he'd disappeared.

_If I had known that girl in the desert was going to become a Jedi I would've left you to die._

She had known he hated Jedi, but the way he had casually informed her of his intentions to hand her over to the Empire, whatever that was, and then to tell her he would have left her to rot in the desert as a child…

Obi-Wan had been right to tell her to avoid him.

Obi-Wan…

She felt tears sting the corners of her eyes at the thought of her mentor but she blinked them away with a sudden fury. Before she could stop herself she reached out with her mind, searching for that familiar bond between master and student. Her eyes widened in surprise when she found the link, although it was being suppressed.

Obi-Wan was alive!

She took a deep, calming breath and began formulating a plan. She needed to escape. She had to find Obi-Wan. He would know what was happening. Her only issue was that she didn't know where Fett was taking her. She was going in blind and that put her at a huge disadvantage.

She didn't know how long she sat there trying to come up with a solid plan. It was hard for her to focus with the empty void in the force screaming around her, but she knew if she was handed to this Empire she was going to die. Her track record for being in near death situations had hit an all-time high lately and she wasn't eager to keep pushing her limits.

The Jedi was torn from her thoughts when the ship gave a slight lurch and began slowing down. Planning time was up; they had reached their destination. She braced herself, waiting for the ship to land, but was taken by surprise when the whole ship turned sideways and came to a stop.  _That_  was disorienting.

The door to the cabin slid open and Fett made his way through. If she didn't know better Nikita would've swore the man had magnets in his boots as easily as he maneuvered through the sideways ship. Much to her surprise he walked right past her, only turning to acknowledge her when he reached the door to the lift.

"We're stopping on Tatooine for supplies. Don't go anywhere,  _Jedi_."

The door to the lift opened, revealing that it wasn't a lift at all, but rather a ladder leading down to the cargo hold. As soon as the bounty hunter was out of sight her mind went into overdrive. If she was going to escape now was her only chance, but she had to find a way to get out of her cuffs first.

Hoping Fett hadn't decided to check her boots for weapons; she pulled her leg up near one of her cuffed hands and painfully reached as far into the side of her boot as she could. The cuffs dug into the skin around her wrist, drawing blood, but her effort paid off when she felt the familiar edge of her hacking device. A triumphant smirk settled on her lips as she pulled the datapad out. Apparently even bounty hunters forgot to check for hidden pockets in the boots.

She set to work hacking the code on her cuffs. It took thirty minutes just to configure the right sequence. Fett didn't mess around with security. At last the cuffs released and she immediately fell off the bed and into the space between it and the refrigeration unit.

"Ow, damn it," she grumbled as she picked herself up and carefully pulled herself up to the cockpit door. Fett had locked it, but she was confident she could get through. She slapped her datapad onto the lock and set it to scramble. As it began uploading junk code to the door's locking mechanism to dismantle it she made her way around the room, searching every nook and cranny for her lightsaber. She couldn't find it, which meant Fett must have taken it into the cockpit. She hoped that was the case. If the hunter had taken it with him she would never get it back.

The door beeped and slid open just as she reached it and she grabbed her datapad and climbed inside. The cockpit wasn't much different than any other. It had two chairs, one for pilot and one for copilot, and the control panel was similar design to several ships she had flown in the past. She began combing over the area for any compartments, knowing she didn't have much time. Fett could be back any minute and she intended to be long gone when that happened. She finally found a hidden compartment below the control panel in the center of the console. A sigh of relief escaped her when she opened it and saw the familiar white leather grip of her lightsaber. She picked it up and turned to leave, only to pause at the door. If she just left, Fett would immediately try and hunt her down. She needed something to distract him and give her a few days to become lost and untraceable. The knight walked back over to the control panel, ignited her lightsaber, and sank the purple beam of energy into the panel as deep as it would go. The smell of melting metal and circuitry filled the air as the console began to smoke and spark.

That should do it, she thought as she deactivated her saber and made her way off the ship. The brightness of Tatooine's twin suns assailed her eyes the minute she stepped off the ramp of Slave I, causing her to squint and cover them until she could see again. She surveyed her surroundings. Fett had landed near a large cliff so his ship would be partially hidden from the air. In front of her the desert stretched on for miles. Nikita knew they had to be close to a city and she wasn't disappointed when she managed to see the gleam of light hitting glass in the distance and the faint outline of buildings. Knowing she would need to reach the city as quickly as possible before she became dehydrated she set out, keeping a watchful eye out for the bounty hunter.

* * *

Boba stood in the cockpit of Slave I, staring at the smoking, destroyed control panel. His fists were clenched so tight the thick leather gloves he wore were the only things keeping him from drawing blood. To say he was furious would be an understatement. That damned idiotic Jedi. She  _dared_  to damage  _his_  ship! The control panel was going to take a week to fix, if not more, and he hadn't even examined the door yet. That damn Jedi was turning out to be more trouble than she was worth, but he would find her.

She had just made it personal.


	7. Chapter 7

I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Seven

It had been three days since Nikita had escaped into Tatooine's "Pirate City" of Mos Eisley. She had had no problem blending into the background here, since the majority of the "citizens" were criminals up to no good. The knight had managed to barter some food and new clothes, exactly like her old ones, from several vendors desperate enough to take Republic credits and now sported a cream-colored leather moto jacket in place of her old Jedi cloak.

She had seen Fett several times in the city buying parts to fix the mess she had made of his ship. Judging by the way he was walking, and the fact that everyone scrambled to move out of his way, she was pretty sure he was furious. She was also pretty sure he had caught sight of her in the crowd a few times, though she made sure to hide soon after and he had never tried to pursue her.

Today was one of those days. It was still early morning, Tatooine's twin suns just beginning to peak over the horizon. Nikita had stopped at a street vendor she had found the day before: a Twi'leck woman who sold hot caf and fresh baked fruit-filled pastries every morning. Though she could only grow certain types of fruit in her home due to the planet's dry climate, the pastries she made were delicious. Nikita stood to the side of the vendor's tent, finishing off her pastry and taking a long drink of her caf. Despite everything that had happened it was a perfect start to a morning.

That was until she glanced across the bazaar at a vendor selling ship parts stall and found a T-shaped visor staring back. A T-shaped visor attached to a very pissed off Mandalorian.

To her panic Fett started across the street towards her. Not wanting to draw attention to herself, Nikita calmly turned and walked in the opposite direction, hoping to blend into the crowd so she could lose the bounty hunter. Unfortunately most of Mos Eisley's denizens kept late hours and slept in at this time of morning, leaving the crowd a lot thinner than she would like. The knight chanced a glance over her shoulder to see Fett still following her and quickened her pace, ducking into a nearby alley. Once out of her pursuer's line of sight she broke into a sprint to make it to the next street. From there she zigzagged through several more alleys and side streets before stopping around the corner of a stall and spying back on the route she had come for any sign of the hunter.

She was so focused on looking for Fett that she didn't notice a figure come up behind her. A hand clamped down on her shoulder and she shrieked in surprise, dropping her caf, and spun around to meet a pair of piercing blue eyes.

"Obi-Wan!"

Obi-Wan quickly gave her a signal to lower her voice as he looked around.

"Not here. Come with me." The older Jedi grabbed her gently around the arm and pulled her out into the crowd again. Nikita looked back over her shoulder for any sign of Fett.

"Are you being followed," Obi-Wan asked in a low tone.

"I was. I think I lost him a few alleys back."

"Him?"

"Boba Fett."

"What," Obi-Wan exclaimed.

"It's a long story," Nikita replied, rubbing her head. "I'll tell you when we're somewhere safer."

She followed the Jedi master to a nearby cantina with a parking garage attached. Once inside he led her to a beat up silver landspeeder.

"Is this yours," Nikita asked, eyeing the vehicle.

"For the time being," Obi-Wan replied.

Despite its poor looking condition, the landspeeder started up with a nice, steady hum and they pulled out of the garage. Nikita couldn't help casting one last glance back the way they had come, half expecting to see Fett coming after them. The bounty hunter was nowhere in sight, however, and she let out a small sigh. She didn't fully relax until they were well outside of the city, at last allowing herself to sink back into her seat and let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. Obi-Wan shot a sideways glance at her but remained quiet.

They traveled the entire time in silence, Obi-Wan focusing on the road and Nikita watching the desert fly past. When they came to a stop the twin suns were already high in the sky. Nikita looked around. They had crossed the Jundland Wastes and now sat atop a cliff overlooking a canyon. A small hut sat on the cliff a few feet from where they were parked.

"Whose house is this," she asked, looking over at her mentor.

"Mine, for now," he replied. "Come inside. We can talk there."

* * *

She sat at her mentor's kitchen table, sipping on the herbal tea he had brewed. She wasn't the biggest fan of tea, but Obi-Wan loved the stuff so she indulged him. She was honestly so happy to have found him alive she would've downed whatever he had set in front of her. Obi-Wan took a long sip of his tea before setting his cup down and fixing her with a stare.

"I was so worried about you," he said quietly. "How did you get here?"

Nikita looked down, fiddling with the handle of her mug as she told him everything that had happened from the time they had last spoke. It hadn't been that long in truth, but after everything that had taken place it felt like ages since they had last seen each other.

Obi-Wan sat back and stroked his beard in thought when she finished her story.

"That explains why Boba Fett was after you. He probably took it as a personal insult that you damaged his ship."

Nikita scoffed. "I don't care as long as it keeps him occupied and away from me. You were right about him."

"Hm. Well just be careful. Fett isn't one to be trifled with, and with the new Empire in place he'll no doubt be working for them."

"The Empire? Just what _is_ the Empire? What happened, master?"

It was Obi-Wan's turn to stare down at his mug while he contemplated what to say.

"Anakin happened," he finally answered in a quiet voice. "He was seduced to the dark side by Chancellor Palpatine. Anakin marched on the Jedi Temple with the 501st. He…slaughtered the younglings and burned the temple."

"What? But…how can this be? How did we not see this sooner?"

"Palpatine was very good at hiding," Obi-Wan said in a low tone. "He fooled us all. He issued Order 66 then held a vote to dissolve the Republic and form the Galactic Empire. He is now Emperor Palpatine."

"The Senate _voted_ for this," Nikita asked in disbelief. "What could have possibly made them think that giving absolute power to one man, who happens to be a Sith lord, was a good idea?"

"Security. Order 66 is an order for all clone troopers to execute the Jedi on sight because they have betrayed the Republic. We were his scapegoat."

Nikita sat in silence, letting the information she had just learned sink in.

"What about the others? How many Jedi are left?"

"I don't know. I met with Master Yoda when I explored the temple but I can't confirm anyone else. The force is so unbalanced right now I can't sense anything."

Silence fell between them once more as they both briefly focused on the empty void echoing around them.

"So what do we do now, master," she asked.

"For now we wait. You go back to the city. Lay low and try to live your life, young one. My place is here now."

"But there's nothing out here, master! Surely you can do more good in the city."

Obi-Wan shook his head and gave her a small, sad smile. "My face is plastered all over Imperial wanted posters, Nikita. I wouldn't make it more than a day or two in the city. Your bounty isn't as high as mine or some others so you should be okay. Do you have anywhere to stay tonight?"

"No. I've spent the last two nights on the street. Republic credits weren't worth much to begin with here. Now they're even less so."

"In that case you can stay here as long as you need to. Besides, there's something I want you to see."

* * *

It was well into the night cycle when they left Obi-Wan's home and drove back across the Jundland Wastes. They came to a stop at a small moisture farm and he signaled for her to be quiet and follow him. The two Jedi crept down the stairs to the lowest level of the house's circular courtyard and over to one of the windows. The house was built into the ground to keep internal temperatures bearable during the day, making it next to impossible to see inside, but the moons were being generous tonight. They cast a pale glow through the window and illuminated the outline of a small baby boy sleeping in a crib.

"Aw. He's cute," Nikita cooed. "Is he what you wanted me to see?"

"Yes. He's the reason I have to stay where I am. His name is Luke. He's Anakin's son."

"What," Nikita exclaimed a bit too loud. Obi-Wan glared at her, telling her to lower her voice before they woke up the house's residents.

"Sorry, master. It's just…Anakin had a kid! With who?"

"Senator Amidala. They've apparently been married for some time. She died giving birth."

"Does Anakin know?"

"About his children? No. About Padme? Most likely."

Nikita watched the sleeping baby for several minutes until what Obi-Wan had said fully registered. "Wait. You said children. Are there more than Luke?"

"Yes." Obi-Wan met her gaze. "Luke has a twin sister named Leia. For the children's safety Master Yoda and I decided to separate them. Senator Organa took Leia with him and Luke will stay here and be raised by his aunt and uncle. This way it should be more difficult for Anakin and the emperor to find them."

A comfortable silence fell between the two Jedi as they observed the slumbering infant. Luke's mouth formed a little 'o' and he fidgeted in his sleep before settling back down, blissfully unaware that the fate of the galaxy would one day rest on his shoulders.

"Do you really believe he'll make a difference," Nikita asked after several minutes, looking over at her old mentor.

"He'll have to. We all have our roles to play, but his will be the biggest. The time of the Republic and the Jedi Order is done," Obi-Wan replied, looking back at her. "He's our last hope."


	8. Chapter 8

I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Eight

Obi-Wan drove Nikita into Mos Eisley early the next morning, dropping her off near the bazaar. To her surprise he shut the landspeeder down and threw her the key.

"It's yours," he said in response to her baffled expression. "I won't be needing it. I have good relations with the Jawas around here and they'll no doubt give me a ride on one of their sand crawlers if I need one. Use this however you need to."

Nikita glanced down at the key in her hand before looking back up and hugging Obi-Wan.

"Thank you, master. I'm glad you're safe."

"I'm glad that _you're_ safe more," he replied. "You know where to find me if you ever need anything. Take care of yourself. There are more and more troopers arriving every day. It won't be long before they enforce martial law. May the Force be with you, Nikita."

"You as well, master. Take care."

Nikita watched the older Jedi depart until he was out of sight before getting in the driver seat of the landspeeder. While a vehicle was a must on the desert planet for most people it wasn't her immediate priority. Her mind made up, she cranked the speeder to life and drove it to a nearby scrap vendor.

After some careful negotiating and a little help from force persuasion she exited the vendor's shop with a nice sum of Imperial credits. One thing was for sure: the Empire was very quick about snuffing out any traces of the Republic.

The next part of her plan was a bit trickier. If she was going to stay on Tatooine she would need a place to live. Most houses and apartments in the city were connected, however, making privacy hard to come by, and finding a vacant residency at all was difficult with so much criminal activity going on.

After searching the better part of the day the young Jedi managed to find a dingy, run-down, standalone apartment for rent near the outskirts of the city. It wasn't ideal, especially once she found out that it was on sale for a discounted price because a murder had taken place next door the day before, but it would have to do.

The Dug landlord was only too happy to accept her offer and she waited until he had left to triple count her deposit before entering her new home. If the outside looked bad the inside was twice as worse. The layout consisted of a main room for eating and living with two small side rooms in the back. One led to the refresher which, to her relief, looked a lot cleaner than she had been worried it would. The other opened into a sparsely decorated bedroom with only a cot in the far corner. Several huge cracks ran through both the bedroom and living room walls, signaling serious foundation issues, and thick metal bars covered the windows. To sum up, it was the worst place she'd ever stayed.

Making peace with her new living arrangements, Nikita walked back to the front door and pulled out her hacking device. In no time she had reconfigured the security on the door lock to help deter any unwanted visitors. Only one thing left to do now.

There were dozens of cantinas in Mos Eisley, all of them catering to the shadier variant of denizen the space port hosted. Nikita had spent the better part of the night discussing her plan to try and get a job in a cantina with Obi-Wan, and though the older Jedi thought it was risky he eventually advised her to try Chalmun's.

For being the most popular cantina in Mos Eisley Chalmun's wasn't much to look at from the outside. The only thing that tipped passerby off as to what the building housed was the word "Cantina" above the entrance. Nikita had done her homework, though, and knew not to take the building at face value. Though it appeared small, the structure sported multiple private offices behind the bar area for people needing to lay low. On top of that it connected to the bazaar at the back entrance to allow for a quick disappearance if needed. It was the perfect place to gather information, provided she could convince Chalmun to hire her.

Nikita stepped into the narrow curved foyer of the cantina, letting her eyes adjust to the sudden change in brightness. She walked into the bar area, casting a quick glance around. The bar itself curved into a tight U with chairs from one end to the other. Booths lined the walls, including a few hidden in small alcoves to grant their occupants extra privacy. The air was thick with cigarette smoke and the knight stifled a cough as she walked up and leaned on the bar. The bartender, a human male with a permanent scowl on his face, turned to her.

"Watcha drinkin'," he asked in a gruff voice.

"Nothing, thanks. I need to speak to Chalmun."

The bartender scoffed. "I don't know what sand crawler you fell off of, lady. Chalmun doesn't speak to just anyone."

"Well perhaps he would be willing to talk to someone who's looking for a job. You won't know until you ask him now, will you," she added with a raised brow when the bartender looked like he was about to tell her to leave. He glared at her for a good minute before grunting in defeat and walking to the back. She waited till his back was turned before letting out a small sigh. She had been about to use force persuasion on him, but was glad she didn't have to. She had never liked using the technique, though it was necessary in some situations.

The bartender was standing in a doorway in the back speaking to someone whom she hoped was Chalmun. He soon turned in her direction and waved her over. She reached the door and gave him a nod of thanks as she passed, receiving a grunt in response. The doorway led to a large office with a private bar built into the back wall. Only two other people occupied the room: another human male behind the bar and a large brown and grey Wookiee with a grey mustache and matching color vest. The latter had been studying a datapad but looked up at her as she entered.

"So, Wuher tells me you want a job," he growled in his native tongue.

"That's correct."

Chalmun set his datapad down and scrutinized her.

"Tell me," he said at last. "Why would I risk hiring a Jedi?"

Nikita's eyes widened and he let out a laugh. "You're not as subtle as you think, girl! I've spent enough time on the streets to read people. I had you pegged the minute you walked in!"

"And what do you intend to do with this information," Nikita asked, trying not to let her nerves show.

"Me? I could care less. Some of my patrons might feel otherwise, however, and I try to minimize destruction of my cantina as much as possible. So answer my question, girl. Why should I hire you?"

"I'm not important enough to be a top priority for most bounty hunters. I need a job and you look like you could use someone to draw in customers during the day. I don't see Wuher's smiling face meeting with too much success. I'll lay low and I can handle myself with minimal damage to your place if the need arise."

"Can you," Chalmun said in a thoughtful tone. "And what do you want in return, outside of pay of course?"

"Simple. I want flexibility. I might need to duck outside if certain people enter the bar to keep from being discovered, and there may be times when I'll need to travel for an extended period of time. All I ask is for the ability to come and go as needed."

The Wookiee leaned back against the bar and ordered a drink. He studied her over the rim of his glass as he took a long sip.

"Normally I would say no to a request like that," he said. "But you've intrigued me. I'll give you a chance, Jedi. You'll be on days with Wuher during the week and nights with Ackmena on weekends. During this time you are free to step out should you need to. Mind you, if you get caught you're on your own. I can't afford the shitstorm of the Empire finding out I knowingly hired a Jedi fugitive."

"Understood," Nikita replied with a grin. "I won't disappoint you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I chose to go ahead and upload this chapter along with the previous one because this one was so short. Also I'm just super excited because things should start picking up in chapters from here on out and I wanted to get to that point on here already. Enjoy!


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Nine

Ten years.

It had been ten years since the fall of the Republic. Ten years since she'd escaped Boba Fett and disappeared into the desert city of Mos Eisley. Ten years that she'd been working as a bartender in Chalmun's Cantina.

In that time she had witnessed the Empire tighten its grip around the galaxy's throat. More and more stormtroopers arrived in the city every day until you couldn't walk through the street without running into at least two patrol units. It had made lying low quite a bit harder, but she had found ways to avoid being identified.

She had helped the cantina up its daytime sales by forty percent, being much more friendly and approachable than Wuher. Nikita had won over the old grump within the first week of working with him and since then the two had become a perfect bartending duo. That wasn't to say she didn't have to deal with the nastier side of working in a bar full of drunken criminals. Her first day of work a Rodian who'd had a bit too much tried to reach across the bar and grope her. Without missing a beat she'd slammed the Rodian's face into the countertop so hard and fast that he actually got up and staggered halfway to the door before falling flat of his face. The whole bar had gone silent, observing the scene unfold, but everyone broke into raucous laughter when the Rodian face-planted. From that point on she had not only earned Chalmun's favor, but she hadn't had many problems with patrons giving her a hard time since.

Nikita looked up from drying off a glass to greet her newest customer and inwardly groaned.

"Hi, Calo."

The young man across from her broke into a wide grin. "Hey gorgeous! You come here often?"

"What do you want to drink," she asked, ignoring his cheesy pick-up line.

"I'm more interested in buying _you_ a drink, baby."

"I'm working."

"Aw, come on! Live a little, sweetheart!" Calo leaned in closer and waggled his eyebrows suggestively at her. "I can make it worth your while."

The knight leaned against the bar and gave the boy an unimpressed glare. "Calo, you're fifteen. I'm thirteen years older than you. Give it up already. You've been trying to flirt with me since the first day you were allowed in here. I'm _not_ interested."

Just as she expected her rejection fell on deaf ears. The teen was nothing if not determined, and though she had threatened to throw him out many times in the past she knew he was harmless, girl crazy, but harmless.

"I'll wear you down one of these days," he said with another grin. "I'll take a Corellian Ale."

Nikita poured him a glass from the tap and set it down in front of him.

"Word of warning," she said. "If you flirt with me one more time tonight I'll serve you nothing but water until you leave."

Calo grinned again and saluted her, letting her know her threat had hit its mark, before focusing on his drink.

The rest of the afternoon passed without incident and Nikita was busy wiping down the bar when she noticed something was amiss. The air in the cantina felt heavier, and it wasn't just from all the cigarette smoke. She continued cleaning, not letting it show that anything was wrong, and reached out as much as she dared to try and sense anything through the force. A sudden chill ran through her, causing the hair on the back of her neck to stand up.

She was being watched.

She cast a quick glance around. The bar was full of their regulars and a few patrons she had never seen before, but no one that gave her the foreboding feeling she had just experienced.

"Somethin' wrong," Wuher asked as he walked over to the beer taps to ready several drinks.

"I don't know yet," she replied in a low tone. The underlying worry in her voice caused him to glance over at her with a frown. Nikita smiled back, not wanting to worry the older bartender.

"I'm sure it's nothing," she reassured him. "I'm going to go ahead and get out of here. I'll see you later."

The Knight was expecting to be ambushed the moment she stepped out the back entrance of the cantina, but to her surprise no one was there. The planets twin suns were setting, casting the bazaar and all its occupants in a fiery orange glow. Nikita cast one last glance around before merging with the crowd. She still felt like she was being watched, but whoever it was was doing an excellent job of staying hidden.

Not wanting to risk going back to her house, she headed toward the city outskirts. There was an area a few miles outside of town that she had discovered several years ago and she often went there after her shifts to meditate. It would be a good place to lure out her unseen follower, especially if it resulted in a violent confrontation.

Her mind raced as she walked through the streets. The only person she could think of that knew she was there was Boba Fett, and she hadn't had anymore run-ins with the bounty hunter since that morning in the bazaar ten years ago. She had been a bit surprised that he hadn't tried coming after her anymore, but based on the rumor mill in the cantina Fett was being kept busy by both Jabba and the Empire. She supposed her bounty wasn't high enough to warrant the hunter's attention, even if he _had_ been furious at her for damaging his ship.

Nikita reached the gates leading outside of the city and passed through with nothing more than a nod from the stormtroopers on duty. She had learned a fake I.D. and civilian file worked well enough to fool the troopers stationed at the gates and hadn't had any problems with them since.

The suns had set by the time she made it outside the city, leaving her to navigate only by the light of the moons and years of repetition. Her meditation spot lay at the end of a box canyon, making it the perfect place for seclusion. Over the years huge chunks of rock had fallen from the surrounding cliffs to form a large, crude circle at the base of the canyon's back wall. The moons cast a pale glow over the area, causing shadows to creep along the canyon walls. Nikita closed her eyes and reached out with the force. The feeling of her being watched had disappeared when she had left the city but she hadn't let her guard down. The knight didn't sense anyone hiding in the shadows in the canyon before her so she walked to the center of the make-shift circle and knelt down, placing her lightsaber in her lap.

It felt like hours passed but she remained still, waiting. The night was quiet, only broken by the occasional gust of wind stirring up loose sand or the faraway cry of a wild beast. Then she heard something else: the slightest shifting of sand, over and over in a steady rhythm. The sound of footsteps.

Her hand tightened around her lightsaber in anticipation. The footsteps stopped only a few feet behind her and the unmistakable sound of a lightsaber igniting sent a chill down her spine.

The Sith had found her.


	10. Chapter 10

I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Ten

Nikita rolled out of the way just before a crimson beam sliced through the air where she had been seconds ago. She was on her feet in an instant, igniting her own lightsaber in time to block another strike. She couldn't see much about her opponent, only that it was a small figure clad in black robes. What she did notice was that they were using a saberstaff, common of assassins. The figure spun around, twisting away from her lightsaber and swinging the other end of their saberstaff at her midsection in an attempt to cut her in half. The knight leapt back and threw the attacker backwards with a force push. The assassin landed roughly in the sand several yards away, their hood falling back to reveal a woman with pale white skin, dark hair plaited in two long braided buns, and orange eyes.

The woman hopped to her feet in one fluid motion and snarled at Nikita. She held out a hand and her saberstaff flew to her from where it had landed. With her weapon in hand once again the Sith charged forward, leaping onto one of the nearby boulders and launching herself at Nikita. The Jedi sidestepped her attack and blocked the swing that followed, pushing the saberstaff around in an arc and throwing the Sith off. The woman staggered back, her guard broken, and Nikita punched her in the jaw. The blow caught the assassin by surprise and she stumbled and fell on her butt in a daze. She moved to get up but froze when Nikita placed the tip of her lightsaber at the woman's throat.

"Who are you," the knight demanded.

The woman sneered at her. "Typical Jedi, always wanting to talk instead of act." She spoke in a crisp accent, and even with her on the ground and Nikita standing over her she still somehow managed to look down her nose at the Jedi. "Very well, I will grant you the mercy of knowing the name of your final opponent. I am known as Sister Tanali."

"Those are bold words for someone with a lightsaber at their throat," Nikita said in an even tone.

"You won't kill me, Jedi. Your kind are too disgustingly honorable to kill a foe at your mercy," Tanali spat.

Nikita quirked an eyebrow as she responded, "Oh, you misjudge me, Tanali. I've cut down Sith that make you look like a child with a training staff."

Tanali faltered a bit at the Jedi's words, seeing the gold flecks in her eyes glint in a dangerous unspoken promise.

A small gleam from the top of the cliff across from Nikita caught her attention and her eyes flicked upward for a split second. That was all the time Tanali needed. The assassin ducked away from the lightsaber at her throat and kicked Nikita in the stomach. The Jedi staggered in surprise and was thrown back before she could recover. She slammed into the canyon wall behind her, knocking all the breath from her lungs and dazing her. She pushed away from the rock wall, shaking her head in an attempt to reorient herself. A large shadow moving across the ground caused her to look up to see one of the huge boulders hurtling through the air toward her.

Nikita managed to jump out of the way and the rock crashed into the cliff wall, causing huge shards of stone to come loose and fall to the ground around her. She dodged out of the way of several of the falling stones until she was in the middle of the makeshift circle. Tanali jumped over one of the stones in a surprise attack and Nikita ducked under her swing, hearing the hum of the saberstaff as it flew over her head. The knight swung her leg around, knocking Tanali's feet out from under her. The assassin fell flat of her back with a grunt, but as Nikita started forward the woman rolled over with a sudden fury and kicked her leg up, catching the Jedi in the jaw.

Pain exploded along the side of Nikita's face as she fell back from the force of the kick. Her vision went white for several seconds and when it came back she saw Tanali about to run her through. She brought her saber up, managing to block the strike and deflect it to the side. This only made the Sith more angry and she gave a scream of frustration as she lifted the Jedi up in a force choke and threw her into the far wall.

The knight slammed into the wall, causing a fresh wave of pain to blossom across her skull. She tried to suck in a breath but Tanali was still choking her. The Sith walked forward and squeezed her hand tighter, enjoying watching the Jedi struggle to get air.

"My calling is greater than you could ever hope to understand, Jedi! Lord Vader has personally tasked me with disposing of the last residual scum of the Republic; A task I take great pleasure in."

Nikita was beginning to see spots dancing in front of her eyes but she forced herself to stay conscious and look for something in range to break Tanali's grip on her neck.

"You were a hard one to find, Jedi," the assassin continued. "You hid your force signature so well it took me months to track you down. How fitting it is that I find you on this backwater cesspool of a planet. Once scum always scum, hm?"

Nikita narrowed her eyes and flicked her right index finger outward. Tanali was suddenly struck by one of the smaller boulders, sending the Sith flying into the back wall of the canyon and breaking her grip on the Jedi. Nikita fell to the ground, which was a good twelve foot drop, and felt a sharp pain shoot through her foot and ankle as she landed. She collapsed to her hands and knees, coughing and gasping for air. The sound of shifting rock came from her left where Tanali had been thrown and the Jedi struggled to get to her feet. Pain shot through her foot again, almost causing her to fall back down, but she managed to stay upright.

The knight spotted her lightsaber glinting in the moonlight a few feet away and pulled it to her, assuming her preferred Niman style and silently thanking the powers that be that Obi-Wan had insisted she learn _all_ of the saber fighting styles during her training. She waited for the assassin to come flying out of the dark at her, but the entire area had gone eerily silent. A noise behind her caused her to spin around in time to get struck by a large, heavy object. The impact of the blow sent the Jedi hurtling into a nearby boulder and she let out a cry of pain as her head struck the rock. She grabbed her head and felt a cut running across the top right of her scalp. As with most head wounds it was already bleeding like crazy, the blood running down the side of her face and into her eye.

Nikita heard uneven footsteps and looked up to see Tanali staggering toward her. The Sith looked just as rough, having a nasty head injury of her own. Tanali fixed Nikita with a murderous gaze and ignited her saberstaff as she continued her uneven shuffle toward the knight. Nikita wiped the blood from her brow and attempted to push herself off the boulder only to fall back against it when a wave of dizzying pain swept through her skull. She ignited her lightsaber and held it in front of her in a weak defense attempt. There was no way she would be able to hold up against the assassin now with both a head and foot injury. She could barely move without having to hold onto something for support and that spelled death in her current situation.

Tanali closed the last few feet between them and easily knocked Nikita's saber to the side. Just as she was about to start the downward swing that would finish the Jedi several loud cracks rang out and blaster fire rained down around the Sith, causing her to jump back to a safe position several yards away.

"What is this," the Sith snarled, focusing on something above them. Before Nikita had the chance to look up she heard the sound of a jetpack and the answer landed several feet in front of her. Even with blood obscuring part of her vision she recognized the white and green clad figure in an instant.

"Boba Fett."

She saw his cape shift as he turned slightly at the sound of his name, but he never took his attention off of the assassin in front of him.

"Bounty hunter scum," Tanali spat. "You dare interrupt me!"

"The Jedi is _my_ bounty," Fett responded in a calm, dangerous tone. "Your master should never have sent you after her."

"You dare oppose Lord Vader's direct orders," the Sith replied in shock and aggravation. "You have no claim to this Jedi, but if you refuse to back down I will have no choice but to eliminate you as well!"

Tanali lunged at the bounty hunter with renewed energy and the two became engaged in a very heated battle. As he moved Nikita saw the moonlight glint off of Fett's rifle and her eyes widened when she remembered seeing the same gleam earlier from the top of the cliff.

Fett _had_ been following her. That knowledge unnerved her more than the fact that the Sith had sent an assassin after her. She looked up in time to see a wall of fire erupt in the middle of the stone circle, Tanali barely managing to avoid it and coming up with smoke rising from her robes.

Nikita pulled the sleeve of her jacket back and typed in a quick code on the remote ship communicator strapped to her wrist. She had no idea where she would go, all she knew was that she couldn't stay and wait to see who won. She was in no shape to fight and her options with either Fett or Tanali weren't ideal.

The sound of a ship approaching pulled the Jedi's attention away from the fight and she pushed off of the rock behind her. Dizziness swept over her once again but she ignored it and braced herself to jump. A red and white Eta-2 Actis-class Interceptor came roaring through the canyon and made a tight turn over where she was standing. Nikita jumped, landing on the wing and falling to her knees when her foot refused to support her. She heard several rifle shots bounce off the ships shields as she scrambled over to the cockpit. Once inside she typed in coordinates for the first place she could think of and didn't relax until she was in hyperspace.

* * *

Tanali fell to the ground with a pained grunt. Her saberstaff lay a few feet away, broken in half and no longer activating on one end. Smoke curled off of her clothes in several places and parts of her robes had been burned away completely.

Boba stood in front of her, victory evident even in his stoic demeanor. A sudden ping caused him to glance down at his wrist before turning his attention back to the Sith in front of him.

"You've lost. Go back to your master and tell him to let _me_ handle this Jedi."

"Don't you dare give _me_ orders, scum," Tanali snarled. "You had no right to interfere in official Imperial business!"

Boba lifted his rifle and aimed it at her head, watching her eyes go wide.

"The Jedi is gone. She's out of your reach and no longer any of your concern. I should kill you here and now for interfering in my hunt and allowing her to escape. Now, go back to Vader and tell him to leave her to me." He pulled the blaster rifle back and rested it on his shoulder. "Before I change my mind."

Tanali glared at him and reached to collect the broken remains of her saberstaff. A blaster bolt buried itself in the sand near her outstretched hand, almost taking one of her fingers off.

"Leave it," came the cold command.

The assassin slowly got up and backed away from him, never turning her back to the hunter. When she thought she was a safe enough distance she called back with one last threat.

"Lord Vader will hear of this, bounty hunter!"

With that said she turned and ran out of the canyon.

Boba ignored her and looked back down at the miniature datapad on his wrist. The tracking device he'd placed on the Jedi's ship earlier was functioning properly, allowing him to get a good idea of where she was headed.

Nar Shaddaa.


	11. Chapter 11

I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Eleven

Nikita had been on Nar Shaddaa for the duration of two weeks and already she had witnessed three murders, six muggings, and a particularly annoying turf war between two gangs. Even the local law enforcement were crooks hired by the Hutts to keep their competitors in check.

She sat in a local dive bar, hidden away in the darkest corner watching the patrons come and go. She hadn't seen any sign of the Sith or Fett since she'd arrived, but she hadn't let her guard down. It was unsettling that the Sith had found her, but what was more worrisome was that Fett had been following her.

That he hadn't given up hunting her after ten years.

She supposed she shouldn't have been surprised. Obi-Wan had told her that Fett would've taken her damaging his ship as personal, and she had heard plenty about the bounty hunter's ruthless reputation for completing jobs. She had managed to evade him three times so far though, so either he wasn't as good as everyone said he was or the Force was _really_ taking care of her.

The disposable datapad she was using pinged and she looked down to see a reply from Chalmun.

_[Just make sure to bring back some of that spiced rum.]_

She rolled her eyes and typed a confirmation reply. She had told Chalmun that she would be laying low on Nar Shaddaa for a few weeks to which his only response was to ask if she could bring back several cases of booze. Typical cantina owner.

As she readied to leave she saw a Weequay enter the bar and walk to the holoprojector in the corner by the refreshers. She paused, watching him. Something was familiar about him but she couldn't put her finger on what it was. The Weequay finished his call and cast a quick, suspicious glance around before he left. Making the split second decision to follow him, Nikita got up, throwing a few credits on the table for a tip, and tailed him out.

The Weequay led her deep into the lower levels of the district, finally coming to a stop at a private docking bay. She snuck forward and hid behind several large crates to observe. The freighter was recognizable, but nowhere near as much as the man standing off to the side of the loading ramp.

Captain Toto.

She watched as the pirate she had tailed there walked up to the captain and said something unintelligible to him. Toto nodded and addressed the rest of his crew.

"All right, let's get this cargo loaded! The Empire isn't paying us to sit on their merchandise; they're paying us to deliver it! Now move! Our next pick-up is on Tatooine and I intend to be on time!"

The crew began loading the ship's cargo hold and Nikita snuck away before she could be discovered. She spent the next day carefully probing around for more information about what the Weequay captain was up to these days, and after several misleads and an attempted mugging she got her answer.

Not only was Toto transporting weapons to the Empire, he was also transporting excavation equipment. The locations the goods were coming from were random and didn't seem to have any pattern to them. What did pique her interest was where the goods were headed: Taris.

Remembering the rakghouls she and Obi-Wan encountered last time they dealt with Toto, Nikita decided it would be best if she found out what the captain was up to.

* * *

She made it back to Tatooine the next day, landing her ship in her rented hangar bay. She knew she was risking a lot coming back so soon after she was almost caught by Fett and the Sith, but if she found out what Toto was up to it would be worth the risk.

After messaging Chalmun and letting him know where to pick up his alcohol, Nikita went to do some more snooping. She had yet to find out where Toto was making his pickup and her window of opportunity was closing fast. She began dropping hints in cantinas and shops that she was looking to do business with the pirate captain, and it wasn't long before she got a lead that he was in Anchorhead. That made sense. Anchorhead used to be Czerka headquarters when they were running their mining operation. Not much went on in Anchorhead anymore, making it perfect for shady business deals.

Nikita arrived in Anchorhead just before double noon. The town should have been bustling with the comings and goings of its few denizens, but there was no one in sight. The Jedi started through the town at a slow, cautious pace, doing her best to stay in the shadows of the buildings. She had expected to see someone as she made her way through the town, but the place looked desolate. An uneasy feeling settled in her gut. Something wasn't right

She was contemplating turning back and trying to spy from outside the town's walls when she heard the slight creaking of a door behind her and felt the unmistakable pressure of a blaster pistol barrel being pressed into her back.

"Welcome to the party, sweetheart," her captor said in her ear. "Now you just keep on walkin'. The boss has been waitin' for ya."

She was steered through the town to the spaceport where the Weequay pirate's ship was docked. The crew were busy loading various crates of excavating equipment onto the ship, but slowed to a halt when they caught sight of her. Her captor nudged her in the ribs, signaling for her to keep walking until they were beside the loading ramp. Captain Toto sat on a crate in front of her, idly cleaning his nails with a knife.

"Ah, Jedi," Toto said, standing as she approached. "You're prettier every time I see you."

"And you haven't changed a bit," Nikita replied with a look of disgust.

Toto laughed. "On the contrary, my dear. I am a much poorer man because of you and your fellow Jedi."

He stepped closer and bent down, pulling her lightsaber from her boot. The pirate behind her shoved the blaster harder into her side in warning not to try anything. The captain examined her lightsaber with meticulous concentration, watching the sunlight glint off of the translucent material and white leather it was made from.

"Lightsabers are a rare find these days," Toto said as he looked up at her once more. "Yours in particular would fetch quite a high price on the black market. Sadly, it wouldn't even begin to cover my losses. That is where you come in, my dear."

"You mean your losses from smuggling," Nikita scoffed. "You had to have known you would get caught sooner or later. You can't expect to blame me for that."

"I can and I will, Jedi," he replied, bringing his knife up and resting the flat side of the blade against her cheek, causing her to go still. "I've had many years to think about how I would get my revenge against you and your master. Imagine my luck when I learned you were on Nar Shaddaa. I only had to time my pickup and lure you here."

He turned her head side-to-side, pressing his knife blade harder into her skin when she attempted to resist.

"As high of a price as you would fetch on the slave market I think I may know of someone who would be willing to pay twice as much for you."

"And who might that be," Nikita ground out, feeling the blade of Toto's knife press a bit more into her cheek as she spoke.

"Oh you know him well, Jedi," Toto replied with a chuckle. "Word is he's very eager to get ahold of you, even going so far as to challenge one of Vader's own assassin's in order to keep your bounty on his personal checklist."

Nikita's eyes widened slightly as she heard this. She would never get used to how fast information spread through the criminal underworld, but that was the least of her problems right now.

"Really," she asked, putting on an air of indifference in order to hide her rising alarm. "If Fett wanted me that bad he would be after me constantly. I don't think I'm as important as you think I am, Toto."

It was partially true. She knew Fett was still after her, but she also knew that if the bounty hunter got his hands on her again there would be no escaping him a second time. He wasn't going to make the same mistakes twice.

Toto let out a chuckle. "You don't know him as well as I thought, Jedi. He's a businessman, first and foremost. He takes care of his business bounties first. You, well, from what I've heard you made things a bit personal when you damaged his ship, and Fett saves his personal targets for his spare time. He's been quite busy lately, but I imagine he'll be happy to make a small detour. Until he does, however, you will need a place to stay and I have the perfect spot in mind." He waved a hand at the pirate holding her. "Show the Jedi to her temporary quarters. We want her to be ready for her buyer."

* * *

Boba was on his way back from Coruscant, having just collected a bounty for Jabba. He had set his ships autopilot on course for Tatooine and was at his workbench recalibrating one of his jetpack thrusters. A ping from his wrist pad snapped him from his concentration, and his eyes slid over to the small screen. It was an alert reminder from the day before, one he hadn't been able to check while on his hunt. He caught himself raising an eyebrow at the information.

Nikita Solaris had returned to Tatooine.

After only two weeks since their last encounter she was either as naïve as he had first thought or had become comfortable. He dismissed the alert and turned his attention back to his jetpack. He would pay her a visit tonight once he had completed his current bounty. He had just gotten back into full concentration working on his repairs when a new pinging filled the air, coming from the cockpit.

Fett leaned back in his chair and glared at the holoprojector. No one usually called him unless it was Vader or Jabba. He got up and walked over to the cockpit. The caller was one he didn't recognize, and he paused for only a second before leaning over and hitting the receive button. A Weequay appeared on screen, smiling when he saw that the call had been answered.

"Ah, Boba Fett! I am Captain Toto Bratro and I am looking to do some business with you."

"I'm listening," Fett said, crossing his arms and leaning against the pilot seat. "Who do you need me to hunt down?"

The captain laughed. "Oh nothing so brazen! You see, our roles are a bit switched. I have recently acquired something I think you will be very interested in."

Before Boba could respond Toto stepped to the side to reveal none other than Nikita Solaris. She was suspended in a containment field by her wrists and ankles and he could see her body sagging against the restraints. Her head was hanging down, obscuring her eyes, and loose strands of hair had fallen forward from the messy bun she kept her hair in. She didn't appear to be breathing.

"She's no good to me dead," he said in a flat tone.

"Oh I assure you she's alive," Toto replied with a chuckle. He reached over and flipped a switch on the panel behind him. The Jedi sprang to life in an instant, letting out a scream of pain as her body convulsed from the electrical current coursing through her. The captain switched the machine off and the Jedi fell limp once again, panting as her body tried to recover.

"So, are you interested," Toto asked as he stepped back in front of the Jedi.

"Why offer her to me when you could just turn her in yourself," Boba asked, his brow furrowing.

"Because I'm a business man. You and I both want to settle scores with this Jedi. I want compensation for the profits she cost me and you want to turn her in for her bounty and what she did to your ship. This way we both get what we want."

Boba stayed silent for several minutes, mulling over what the captain had proposed. He knew the Weequay would probably demand an astronomical amount of credits for the Jedi, but when he thought about coming back to find her gone and his control panel scrapped no amount of money in the universe was too much to get ahold of her again.

"How much," he asked.

"Seventy-five thousand credits. That should be enough to cover my losses and still be fair to you, considering you'll get it back in her bounty."

"Very well," Fett agreed. "I'll call you when I'm ready to make the exchange."

"Excellent," Toto said with a sly smile. "I'll send you the coordinates then. I look forward to doing business with you."

* * *

Nikita wasn't sure how much time had passed since Toto had contacted Fett, but she had guessed several days based on how weak her body had become. The pirates hadn't bothered to feed her or give her anything to drink, and had continued torturing her up until the day of the exchange.

When it came time for the exchange Toto ordered two of his men to get her down. She collapsed to the floor the minute the field powered down and was roughly picked up under the arms and half dragged - half marched outside.

The first thing she saw when they reached the loading ramp was the entire Weequay crew gathered in a large circle. The second was a familiar T-shaped visor in the middle of that circle that was trained on her. The pirates holding her dragged her over to the Mandalorian and pushed her forward, causing her to stumble and fall to her hands and knees just a few inches from his boots. She didn't have time to try and move before she felt an iron-like grip around her upper arm that pulled her up to a standing position. The sudden shift in balance proved too much for her body's weak state and her left leg buckled under her weight. Her right arm was jarred upward as she fell, Fett's grip only tightening and pulling against her to keep himself balanced.

"Get up," came the merciless command, and Nikita glared up at the bounty hunter as she slowly pushed herself back up to standing. Fett observed her in silence for several seconds before turning his attention to Toto.

"How long did you torture her," he asked the captain. If Nikita didn't know better the hunter sounded almost…angry.

"Just up until you arrived," Toto replied, waving a dismissive hand. "If you haven't noticed I didn't even need to place stasis cuffs on her. She's far too weak to try anything. My methods are effective, and she is a Jedi. A few days without food and water won't kill her so easily. Now, for the matter of my payment."

Fett let go of Nikita's arm and began typing on his wrist pad.

"I'm sure the bounty hunter would love to know your plans for my possessions, captain, since those weren't part of the deal you made with him. Or perhaps you forgot to mention that part," Nikita said in a sly tone.

If looks could kill she would have been dead on the spot from the glare Toto shot her, but her words had their desired effect as Fett's hand stilled from his typing and he looked up.

"What possessions," he growled.

"Nothing much," Toto replied with a light laugh, but it was obvious he was nervous. "Just the Jedi's lightsaber and some of her tech equipment. Nothing you would—"

"Whatever the Jedi had stays with her," Fett said, cutting Toto off and leaving no room for argument.

The captain scowled. "If you want it you'll have to pay extra, bounty hunter. Our original deal was only for the Jedi."

"Very well."

"Thirty thousand credits, to cover the remainder of my losses."

Fett paused for only a moment before going back to typing. Though he hadn't spoken, Nikita could tell by his body language that he was irritated at the captain's last minute expenses. He finished the transaction and nodded at Toto. The captain turned to one of his men and said something too quiet to hear. The pirate nodded and ran up the ramp, disappearing into the ship.

"He has gone to fetch the Jedi's belongings while I wait on the transfer to go through," Toto said before he turned and began conversing with some of the nearest members of his crew.

"You should have left while you still had the chance, bounty hunter," Nikita said in a quiet voice.

Fett's helmet never turned from his gaze at the ships loading ramp as he answered, "Be quiet, Jedi."

"You're asking all the wrong questions," she went on, ignoring him. "You should have asked who he's going to double cross you for."

He turned to her then, grabbing her arm and giving it a rough jerk as further warning to keep silent. The unexpected movement caused her to lose balance once again and fall forward, just barely having time to throw out a hand and catch herself before her face smashed into his chest.

Fett took a step back for balance as her hand hit his chest in an effort to stop herself. Just as soon as she had fallen into him she righted herself, pulling away with a snarl and attempting to rip her arm from his grasp. It was unsuccessful, and she grimaced in pain when he tightened his grip hard enough to leave a bruise.

"Ah, here we go," Toto exclaimed, drawing their attention back to him. His man had returned and he was now holding Nikita's lightsaber, hacking device, and ship communicator. Toto nodded and the pirate took the items and brought them to Fett, who only let go of her long enough to put them away on his person.

"We're done here," Fett said, turning to leave only to find the way blocked by grinning, armed pirates. The pirate who'd brought Nikita's lightsaber to the Mandalorian lunged forward, grabbing her in a headlock and pressing his blaster pistol to her temple.

"Better let 'er go, or you'll get to see what 'er brains look like on that armor o' yours," he sneered. Fett released his grip on her arm and the pirate dragged her back, out of his reach.

"What is the meaning of this," the hunter growled in a threatening tone, turning back to the captain.

"Merely business," Toto replied as the rest of his crew trained their weapons on the Mandalorian. "You see, it took you so long to get back to me on my offer that I began to wonder if you really wanted the Jedi as much as I thought you did. Merchandise like her does me no good sitting still for long, so I contacted some of my other possible buyers and came across a deal just too good to pass up: Twice as much for the Jedi, and an extra million if I could deliver the bounty hunter who was responsible for a recent loss in some very valuable merchandise."

"A slave trader," Nikita said in disgust before Fett could respond. "I was wondering when your true colors were going to show, Toto. You can't make an honest deal, can you?"

"You wound me, my dear," Toto replied, putting on a hurt expression. "I am merely conducting business."

Movement from behind Fett caught Nikita's attention and she looked over in time to see one of the pirates fire off a shot from a tranquilizer rifle. Fett let out a grunt as the dart hit him and in mere seconds he had fallen to the ground, unmoving.

"What did you do to him," she growled, straining against her captor.

"Just a nerve toxin," the captain replied in a nonchalant manner. "No permanent damage done."

"You bastard! You take his credits and then betray him without a second thought? You disgust me!"

Toto laughed at her outburst, only riling her further.

"Don't get yourself so worked up, my dear. I was under the impression that you _didn't_ want to go with him."

Nikita didn't respond, settling for a glare instead. She saw Toto's look become smug.

"You know, you and I are not so different from each other, Jedi."

"I'm _nothing_ like you."

"Really," Toto said. "If what I witnessed on Korriban was anything to go by then you're just as quick to betray others as I am."

Nikita froze, staring at the captain in horror. How did _he_ know about that? Toto grinned, knowing he had her.

"Oh yes, Jedi, I was there. I saw how fast you cut down your companions. I'm almost surprised by your reluctance to go with the bounty hunter. I imagine the Empire would welcome a Jedi killer with open arms."

"Shut up," she growled, the gold flecks in her eyes glinting. She was about to say more but was interrupted by the unmistakable sound of a Tusken war cry echoing across the dunes. She had been so preoccupied by her immediate situation that she had failed to notice that the captain's meeting place with Fett was out in the middle of the desert, likely to cover his tracks. The war cry sounded again, much closer now, and the pirates began looking around nervously.

"There, captain!" One of them pointed and she caught a glimpse of a lone figure on a bantha. She knew how the raiders worked though. Behind that first rider would be countless others.

"Get in the ship," Toto shouted. "Bring the Jedi and bounty hunter!"

Knowing she wouldn't get another chance, the Jedi planted her feet and elbowed her captor hard in the stomach. He let go of her in surprise and she stumbled as fast as she could to Fett's body. He had clipped her lightsaber to the side of his belt and she ripped it off and activated it just as the two pirates sent to pick up the paralyzed hunter reached her. One of them raised his blaster, but Toto interrupted him.

"Leave her! We don't have time!"

Nikita chanced a glance at the pirate captain to see him scowling at her. She had cost him his credits again, most of them, at least. The ships ramp retracted and its engines roared to life, disturbing the sand and sending it swirling into the air, forcing the knight to shield her eyes. She wasn't able to look around again until the sound of the Weequay ship had faded into the distance. She glanced up to see nothing and frowned. Where had the Sand People gone? As if in answer to her question she heard a noise behind her and turned in time to see a Tusken swinging the blunt edge of his gaderffii at her head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the kudos, comments, and bookmarks! It's very flattering to know you all enjoy this story as much as I do!


	12. Chapter 12

I do not own anything from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Twelve

Nikita opened her eyes and instantly regretted it. The entire right side of her head felt like it had been split open. That's when she remembered the Tusken Raider and his gaderffii. She let out a groan and sat up as slow as she could, holding her throbbing head and keeping her eyes closed in the hopes that it would make the spinning sensation she felt a little easier to bear.

It didn't.

The first thing she saw when she chanced opening her eyes again was the ground, which had thankfully stopped moving. The second was that her hands were now bound together with rope and all of her stuff was once again gone. She rested her head in her hands with a sigh and felt her fingers tangle in parts of her hair that had matted up with dried blood from her injury.

Great.

"It's about time you woke up, Jedi."

She froze, instantly recognizing the deep Mandalorian accent. The Jedi picked her head up just enough to see over her hands and was unable to keep from staring at the sight before her. Boba Fett sat a few feet to her left, leaning against one of the make-shift walls that made up their holding cell. He had been stripped of everything except his white armor mesh battle suit and his boots. Nikita had remembered Obi-Wan telling her that Boba was the only unaltered clone of Jango Fett, but hearing it and seeing it were two very different things. He looked just like the clones she had fought beside during the war. The same natural tan, high cheek bones, and brown eyes. He even sported the same ivy league haircut as some of the clones had, except the sides of his head weren't shaved down to the scalp. Fett glanced over at her and met her eyes with the iciest glare she'd ever seen.

"What," he growled through clenched teeth.

She shook her head and turned away. She didn't need the force to sense the fury rolling off of the bounty hunter in waves. Instead she decided to focus on their surroundings. The walls were nothing more than long sticks lashed tightly together and sharpened to points at the tops to deter escape. The cell was open to the sky and the twin suns blazed mercilessly overhead. As tan as she was she could already see the red of a sunburn forming on her arms, along with a hand-shaped bruise from Boba's not-so-gentle handling of her earlier.

A divider made from animal hide hung across from where she was sitting. It was suddenly pulled back and a male and female Tusken entered. The woman approached them with caution, likely expecting them to attack, and set down two bowls of food and a canteen of what Nikita suspected was water. As the woman was getting up to leave Nikita leaned forward and asked her a question in Jawaese. The female Tusken paused for only a second, her mask tilting in the Jedi's direction before she walked out. The male barked a short answer to her before he exited behind his companion.

"What was that," Fett asked, seeing the look on her face.

"We're being kept alive for a bloodrite ritual." The raised brow she received in response to her statement told her all she needed to know about Fett's knowledge of the Tuskens. She let out a sigh of frustration and rubbed her temples. "Short version: We're going to be tortured to death come morning."

"Which gives a small window to escape," he replied, rocking forward and standing in one fluid motion.

"Where do you think you're going," Nikita asked with a raised brow. "You wouldn't make it past the guards at the door, let alone the entire camp. We're smarter waiting for nightfall."

"You aren't calling the shots here, Jedi," he growled as he towered over her. "You'd be wise to remember that."

She glared up at him. "No one's calling the shots, bounty hunter, but _you'd_ do well to start _thinking_. I've heard you're the best out there, but so far I've seen you walk into bad situations like you're blindfolded. You can't even seem to catch me."

Fett struck so fast she didn't have time to brace herself. He grabbed her forearms and yanked her to her feet. A wave of dizziness made her head spin and forced her to close her eyes. When she opened them again she found herself uncomfortably close to him, their noses almost touching as he glared down at her.

"You've been getting very lucky, Jedi," he said in a threatening tone. "Don't push it."

"Or what," she bit back. "You'll kill me? We both know you won't do that, Fett. I'm worth too much to you alive."

They glared at each other, the animosity so thick between them Nikita was sure even a lightsaber would take a week to cut through it.

"So what do you say to a truce," she added. "I watch your back, you watch mine. Then once we're out of here you can continue _trying_ to catch me."

His hands tightened around her arms when she placed emphasis on the word "trying", but then he snorted and let her go, causing her to fall to her hands and knees.

"Can I even _trust_ a _Jedi_ to watch my back?"

"That depends. Can I trust a bounty hunter not to shoot me in mine," she responded in kind, sitting back up.

Fett didn't answer, instead walking back over to his earlier spot and sitting down again. Nikita ignored the irate hunter and turned her attention to the bowl of food in front of her. It appeared to be some kind of stew, with chunks of meat and some sort of leek-like plant floating in the broth. She picked up the crude wooden spoon and sampled a bit of the broth, feeling her stomach rumble in appreciation. It was the first meal she'd had in days and she wasn't sure if she was going to see another one any time soon. When she was finished she grabbed the canteen, taking several long swallows of water before leaning back against the wall behind her. She was still hungry. One bowl of stew wasn't enough to counter several days of starvation.

Hoping that meditation might help to distract from the pangs in her stomach she closed her eyes and leaned her head back. A small clinking sound caused her to snap her head up just in time to see Fett setting his bowl of food down within her reach. She looked over at him and felt her brow quirking upwards out of habit.

"Did you poison it when I wasn't looking?"

"You already know, Jedi: I need you alive. You won't be that way for much longer if you don't eat."

It was when he said this that she remembered how angry he'd sounded when he'd questioned Toto about torturing her.

"A bounty hunter who doesn't agree with torture, how ironic," she said in a sarcastic tone.

"I have a code."

"Ah, yes. I'm sure all bounty hunters say that to make themselves feel better."

An irritated grunt was the only response she received as the hunter leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes. Pretty soon her hunger won out over her caution and she picked up the bowl.

"Thanks," she begrudgingly said.

Fett didn't respond, much to her relief. It was already awkward enough being held captive alongside the bounty hunter. She didn't need things to become any more complicated than they already were.

* * *

The hours ticked by at a slow, agonizing pace. Neither she nor Fett had spoken since their standoff, and the sky was already beginning to transition to the deep blue that led into the night cycle.

"So," she said, trying not to sound as uncomfortable as she felt. "Do you want to discuss a plan?"

"No," came the immediate, snarky response.

Nikita rolled her eyes and stared up at the sky, willing nightfall to hurry up and arrive. They were probably going to die just because of the hunter's sheer stubbornness. Fett had to be the most infuriating individual she had ever met, and she had worked in a cantina the past ten years.

The leather flap leading outside was pushed back and a Tusken couple entered with their next, and likely last, meal. The woman approached and set their food down, much like last time, before picking up their old bowls and exiting. Nikita picked up her bowl, deciding she'd better eat now so she'd be ready for whatever was going to happen when they tried to escape. She watched with silent relief as Fett picked up his own bowl and started eating. She had been worried he was going to try giving this bowl of food to her as well.

She fished a chunk of meat out of the bowl with her spoon and was about to eat it when Fett spoke, startling her to the point where she almost dropped it, spoon and all.

"Why did that pirate call you a Jedi killer?"

She stared down at her food, which had suddenly become unappetizing.

"I thought you were unconscious," she said, cutting her eyes at him.

"I was paralyzed, not unconscious," he scoffed. "Now answer the question, Jedi."

She really didn't want to.

That knowledge was locked away in the Jedi Temple and hopefully destroyed when the temple was burned. Only a handful of people still living knew what had really happened that day. She _did not_ want to add Fett, of all people, to that list.

"Why do you care," she asked, looking over at him.

"I don't trust Jedi. I trust traitors even less."

"I am no traitor," she growled, her eyes sparking in anger at his assumption. "I was sent on a mission with several of my peers to investigate reports of pirates smuggling dangerous Sith artifacts off the planet of Korriban. Once there the leader of our group was possessed by the spirit of an ancient Sith lord. She then took control of my other two companion's minds and sent them after me. I was captured and tortured until I fell to the dark side, but I managed to come back to my senses and was forced to fight and kill my companions in order to make it out alive. Does that satisfy your curiosity, bounty hunter?"

"You expect me to believe that," Fett asked, raising a brow.

Nikita leaned back against the wall with a sigh of irritation and closed her eyes before responding, "I don't care _what_ you believe. I have no reason to lie. Why did you ask in the first place if you weren't going to believe me anyhow?"

She didn't receive an answer and figured that was the end of the conversation. She was wrong.

"That can't be the whole story," Fett continued.

"That's all of it that _you_ need to know, bounty hunter. You're now one of five remaining people that know what happened that day. If you want the details you won't be getting them from me."

The Jedi heard an annoyed huff and chanced a glance at Fett to see him staring at her with an unreadable expression. The silence between them was broken suddenly by the sounds of Tusken revelry filling the air.

"Well," she said, barely containing her sigh of relief. "That's our cue."


	13. Chapter 13

I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Thirteen

It was several hours into the night cycle when they made their move. The Tuskens celebration was still going on, and only one guard was posted outside of their cell. Fett had moved to stand by the entryway to see if he could get a glimpse of the area just on the other side. Nikita saw him turn and held up her hands, mouthing for him to stay put. She could see his frown even in the dark but he crouched down, staying where he was.

The Jedi closed her eyes and focused on the guard outside of their cell. She knew she wouldn't be able to persuade him since she couldn't speak Tusken, but she had an idea as to how to lure him into the cell. She turned her focus to the stones lying on the ground around him, slowly pulling them to her with the force. She felt the warriors sudden unease as he witnessed her trick, followed by confusion as he watched the stones disappear underneath the leather divider leading into their cell. It was enough, and she opened her eyes in time to see the Tusken take a step inside. He had no sooner done so when Fett launched himself forward, grabbing the warrior from behind in a headlock and choking him out in a matter of seconds.

The warrior fell to the ground with a dull thud and Fett crouched down beside him, pulling a knife from the Tusken's belt. Nikita had been walking toward him but stopped when she saw the knife in his hand. Fett noticed her hesitation but his serious expression didn't change. He beckoned for her to come closer and she slowly approached him, keeping her senses open for any indication he was about to attack her. The minute she was within range Fett grabbed her wrists, impatient at her hesitance. She tensed, readying herself to fling the hunter back with a force push, but was caught off guard when he yanked her arms above her head. She stumbled forward, attempting to maintain her balance, and collided with his chest.

"Don't even _think_ of trying anything, _Jedi_ ," Fett growled down at her, unfazed at their close proximity. "I have half a mind to leave your hands tied."

Nikita glared at him, but opted to remain silent. He lowered her hands and began cutting through the rope bindings on her wrists. The Jedi stepped as far away from him as his grip would allow, relieved to put even the slightest bit of distance between them. It felt like an eternity before he cut through the last of her bindings. The minute he did she took several more steps away from him, rubbing her wrists. She watched as he flipped the knife around and began attempting to cut through his own bindings. The knight let out a sigh and held her hand out, feeling a bit irritated when he looked from her to her outstretched hand with contempt.

"Will you just let me do that," she said. "You're going to end up stabbing yourself or cutting a finger off."

"I don't trust you."

She rolled her eyes and took a step forward, her hand still outstretched. "I don't trust you either but I still let you cut me loose."

He gave her a hard stare for almost a full minute before he let out a slow exhale and held the knife handle out to her. She stepped up to him and took the knife, placing a hand on one of his fists to brace as she began cutting through the rope. She kept her eyes focused on her task, doing her best to ignore the tenseness in the bounty hunter's body. She felt just as tense, having never in a lifetime any desire to be this close to the man who put her life most at risk. The last piece of rope giving way to the knife was like a weight being lifted from her shoulders and she let go of Fett as though he'd burned her.

"Not so fast, Jedi," he said, holding out a hand. "Hand over that knife."

She gave the knife back without a word. If it made him feel better to have it then fine. Whatever got her out of here faster.

They stepped out into the main pathway that made up the outermost ring of the camp. Fett had made Nikita take point so he could keep an eye on her, and she was doing her best to ignore the hunter's presence looming over her shoulder. She followed the path around to the left, heading toward the sounds of revelry in the hope that the main entrance would be near the center of camp. They passed several other cells similar to the one they had been held in but no Tuskens stood guard outside. Nikita hadn't felt any presences aside from Fett's and so assumed the cells were empty. She was sneaking past another one when she heard a faint "Help!" The Jedi stopped abruptly causing Fett to run into her, and the two shared a brief glare before she turned her attention back to the cell. She peeked through the slight gap between the leather divider and the wall to see around a dozen Jawas all huddled together. The knight pulled the divider back and stepped inside the cell. Fett was at her shoulder in an instant.

"There isn't time for this," he ground out.

"I'm not going to walk away when I have a chance to help them," Nikita replied with a look of defiance. The hunter responded with a huff when he realized she wasn't going to budge and turned to keep a lookout at the doorway. One of the Jawas approached Nikita and she turned her attention to him.

"Thank you, human. My tribesmen and I had almost given up on ever escaping the Sand Giants. I am Vazze Qavi, leader of my tribe," the Jawa said in Basic.

"Pleased to meet you, Vazze. My name is Nikita Solaris," she responded in a respectful tone. Vazze glanced behind her at Fett before addressing her again.

"And your companion?"

"Uh…" Nikita could feel Fett's eyes boring into the back of her head, waiting for her response. "He's not my companion. We just happened to get put in the same cell."

It wasn't a total lie.

"I see," Vazze responded. "Please, can you help us escape?"

"We'll do our best but the Sand People took our weapons and armor. Do you happen to know where they would have stored it?"

"Yes! I'll take you there," Vazze exclaimed as he made for the door. Nikita, Fett, and the rest of the Jawa group followed him out and farther down the pathway toward the center of camp. He stopped several doors down at an open doorway and motioned for Nikita to join him.

"In here," he said as both she and Fett approached. "Beware the beasts though."

"The beasts…" The words died in Nikita's throat as she glanced in the open doorway and saw their gear glinting in the pale light of the moons like an island amidst a sea of sleeping mastiffs. The reptilian dog-like beasts were so numerous that she could barely see the ground beneath them. Trying to wade through the creatures would be suicide. She looked behind her to find Fett standing at her shoulder, surveying the scene with a furrowed brow. To her surprise the bounty hunter pushed past her and started to step inside the room. Nikita reached out without thinking and grabbed his sleeve. He froze and looked down at her hand before ripping his arm out of her grasp.

"Don't touch me, Jedi."

"Are you crazy," she hissed, ignoring his irritation. "You can't just go walking through there! You'll get ripped apart!"

"Do you have a better idea," he hissed back.

Nikita looked away from him and back at all the slumbering beasts in the room.

"Maybe," she said after some thought. "But it's going to take time and may increase our chances of getting caught."

"And that is," he asked with impatience lacing his voice.

"I can get to our stuff and then move your gear out to you with the force."

"No."

"There's no other way," she said in exasperation.

"I said no, Jedi. How do I know you won't try something the minute you're in there."

"Because the first one the dogs will eat if they wake up will be me!" Nikita paused and rubbed her temples in irritation. "Okay, how about this: I'll give your rifle to you first, then you can shoot me if you don't like what I'm doing."

Fett's eyes narrowed at the sarcasm in her last statement but he eventually gave her a nod. Nikita turned and instructed Vazze and the other Jawas to go hide in a nearby cell to give Fett more room to stay in cover. She waited until the Jawas were in their hiding place before crouching, taking only a few seconds to focus, and leaping off the ground.

She landed without a sound next to their gear, quickly glancing around to make sure all the mastiffs were still sleeping. Once she was sure she hadn't disturbed anything she got up and crept around the pile to get an idea of where everything was. She found Fett's rifle lying at the back of the pile next to her lightsaber and tech gear. She knelt down and grabbed her stuff, putting it away on her person as quick as she could. She knew the hunter was going to turn on her the minute they got out of the camp, or even as soon as he got all of his gear back. She had to find a way to escape him before either of those happened. She glanced down at her hacking device and an idea came to her. She tapped several sequences in and set the program to activate as soon as it was triggered before putting the device away, hoping that it would be enough to activate against the bounty hunter when the time came. With all of her personal belongings secure she turned her focus to Fett's blaster rifle, lifting it off the ground and moving it to the entrance of the room with the force.

Nikita had been telling Fett the truth when she had said it was going to take time. The Mandalorian's armor had so many pieces to it that she was forced to only move a few at a time in order not to risk dropping any and waking up the entire room of mastiffs. It also made it harder to concentrate with his rifle trained on her as it had been ever since he'd gotten his hands back on it. At last she moved the final pieces of armor to the door and sat back to take a short break. Something as simple as that wouldn't normally have bothered her, but the unnecessary stress caused by his presence had given her a headache. She heard the clinking of Fett's armor as he put it back on and decided it would be better to jump back now than later at gunpoint.

She landed just outside the door and straightened to find herself staring into that familiar T-shaped visor. The Jedi turned and called out to the Jawas, trying to ignore how much more intimidating Fett was in full armor. The minute the Jawas rejoined them Fett lifted his rifle and aimed it at her chest.

"Get moving, Jedi, and don't even _think_ about trying anything."

Nikita rolled her eyes and started down the pathway. It wasn't long until they came to an intersection. She glanced to her right and saw two warriors with their backs to her. Unlike the path they had been on the main path was lit with torches. She stepped back to try and get out of the light before she was spotted and backed into Fett's rifle barrel. The knight turned to snap at him to back off but before she could utter a word he grabbed her arm and pulled her toward him. She felt her back hit his chest and looked up in time to see a guard walk by and turn down the path opposite of theirs. Her eyes widened. She hadn't even sensed the guard approaching! Fett had pulled her back into the shadows to keep them from being discovered but it was _his_ fault she had been distracted in the first place. The irritating man was going to get her killed sooner rather than later.

As soon as the guard was out of sight Fett let go of her and stepped forward, taking aim at one of the guards at the entryway.

"Don't—," Nikita started, but was cut off by the crack of the rifle. Two shots and both guards dropped almost at the same time, both shot in the head. The rumors had been true; the man was an excellent marksman. That didn't deter her from shooting him a glare, but she didn't have time to tell him what she thought of him right then. They could already hear the yelling from the center of the camp as the Tuskens began mobilizing against the perceived threat.

"Vazze, get your people out of here," she yelled at the Jawa chieftain behind her. "Don't stop for anything, just go!"

The Jawas scrambled to run out of the camp and Nikita followed close behind. She could sense Fett behind her as she kept her senses open to try and pick up any enemies around or ahead of them. A loud war cry split through the nighttime silence of the desert and she saw the Jawas in front of her pick up their pace in panic.

The knight tried to make out some of the surroundings as she ran but nothing stood out. She could only guess at where in the desert they were. They topped a dune only to find a seemingly endless sea of sand and she let out a grunt of frustration and stopped. The Jawas stopped as well and Vazze turned to her.

"Go," she told him. "We'll cover you."

"Thank you, Nikita Solaris," Vazze said with respect. "If either of you ever lose your ships I would be happy to sell them back to you at a ten percent discount."

Nikita couldn't help but let out a laugh at the Jawa's words. Even in a situation this dangerous he was still trying to pitch a sale. It was so ridiculous she had to laugh. The knight bade farewell to the Jawa group, waiting until they had started making their way onward before she turned her attention back to the bounty hunter beside her.

Fett was standing still as a statue, his rifle resting on his shoulder, scanning the landscape for any sign of pursuers. Nikita closed her eyes and reached out, trying to sense any life forms. She detected a warrior on a far off dune.

"Directly in front of you, about 200 yards," she said. Fett aimed and shot in less than five seconds and she watched the warriors head fly back as the shot met its mark.

"300 yards," he corrected her.

She shot him a wry look and quirked a brow, about to respond when the force pulsed around her in warning. The Jedi jumped forward, drawing her lightsaber and landing beside the bounty hunter in time to deflect several shots that came from a nearby dune to the right. She felt him stiffen in surprise, thinking she was about to attack him, but before he could move a howl of pain rang out as one of the deflected shots hit home and then the air was filled with the sound of blaster fire as the remainder of their assailants broke cover.

Jedi and bounty hunter were forced to dive apart as the ground around and under them was pelted with bolts. Nikita could sense two warriors ahead of her, hiding in the dunes, and she channeled the force into the sand in front of them, throwing it up in the air to create a cloud. The warriors didn't stop shooting but their aim became atrocious as the sand obscured their sight. She was able to deflect their shots with ease, injuring both of them and removing them from the fight. She turned to check on Fett and saw a Tusken taking aim at her. The knight raised her lightsaber to deflect the shot but instead saw the warrior's head fly back. She looked over at Fett in time to see him lowering his rifle and he turned toward her.

"Payback," was all he said in response to her raised brow.

"Oh really? So what do you plan to do for the one about to hit you in the foot?"

She watched him take a step back and a second later a blaster bolt buried itself in the sand where his left foot had been. Fett reacted in an instant, taking out the shooter and Nikita watched him look back at her. She could sense the unease rolling off of him and she laughed.

"You're welcome. So bounty hunter, it's just you and me. What happens now?"

Her answer came in the form of his rifle being aimed at her head.

"Drop your lightsaber, Jedi, and no tricks," he said in a low tone. Nikita deactivated her lightsaber and let it fall to the ground between them but was unable to hide the triumphant grin that crept across her face.

* * *

Boba only had a few seconds to wonder why the Jedi was grinning before he heard a small ping and the entire HUD system in his helmet went out. He let out a surprised grunt as his vision cut out and static filled his ears. The sudden malfunction disoriented him, but before he could move to put distance between the Jedi and himself or rip his helmet off the HUD reset as if nothing had happened. The hunter straightened and looked around for the Jedi, expecting some sort of surprise attack, but she was gone. Her footsteps led a few feet away and then cut off, meaning she had probably called her ship and escaped on that. He pulled up feedback on the tracking chip he had planted on her ship only to let out a curse as it showed the ship was already docked back in Mos Eisley. She had likely gunned it in the hopes that she could disappear back into the city before he caught up to her again. Boba had been keeping close tabs on her and knew both where she worked and lived, but he also knew now that she would be smart enough to stay away from those places until she was sure he wasn't actively pursuing her.

He sighed in irritation and typed in the code to summon Slave I. He could probably catch up to her if he hunted the next few days or weeks but he had more pressing matters, mainly a pirate captain that still had his money. The sky was beginning to lighten by this time and the silence of the desert was soon broken by the familiar thrum of the Slave I's engines. The hunter headed straight for the cockpit once he was on board and it wasn't long before he had a hit on Captain Toto's ship. He typed in the coordinates and leaned back in his chair. He still couldn't figure out how the Jedi had disabled his HUD. He knew she had some sort of datapad she used for hacking. He had figured that out the day he came back to find her escaped and the door to his cockpit fried. It had taken him two weeks just to get it working properly again. What he couldn't figure out was how she had managed to time the scramble on his HUD system, unless…

Boba groaned when he remembered the ping he had heard right before his helmet malfunctioned, all the pieces falling into place. She had set up a program to activate upon voice recognition and key word triggers, not a tactic usually used in the spur of the moment. He could almost feel the whack in the back of the head that his father would give him when he messed up. He had made a rookie mistake and it had cost him his bounty. Again. At least one good thing had come from this encounter: information. He now had background information he would need to research on the Jedi, and he also knew now that he had underestimated her.

Nikita Solaris was far more experienced, intelligent, and irritating than he had first thought.


	14. Chapter 14

I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Fourteen

The city of Mos Eisley was just beginning to stir in the early hours before dawn. Nikita had propped herself against the back wall of a shop, sipping on her morning cup of caf and speaking to the Twi'leck stall owner she had discovered when she first escaped into the city. It had become her routine over the years to stop at the stall every morning on her way to work and she and the stall owner, Ooma, had become good friends.

"So," the red Twi'leck said after filling a bleary-eyed Rodian's order. "Any more exciting adventures as of late?"

Nikita laughed. "Not for a year now, and I'm not sure 'exciting' is the word I would use."

Ooma laughed as she took a very hung over human male's order.

"Oito thinks it's exciting. He still goes on about how you must've had to fight your way out with your bare hands," she said with an amused twinkle in her green eyes.

Oh if only he knew, Nikita thought to herself. Oito was Ooma's young son and the knight still remembered how he had grilled her with questions for hours after he had heard about her run-in with the Tusken Raiders. The seven year old had wanted to know every last detail. She hadn't told the whole story though. Just about everyone who knew her had heard about her being kidnapped by the Sand People a little over a year ago. As far as the public story went she had managed to escape with the help of some Jawas. She had left out the parts about her being captured and tortured by pirates first, then forced to work with the most infamous bounty hunter in the galaxy.

She had laid low for months after escaping Fett this most recent encounter, worried he was actually going to chase her down. He didn't and a few weeks later she heard why. Imperial authorities had discovered the drifting remains of a ship belonging to a Captain Toto Bratro. The bodies of the captain and his crew had all been found aboard what was left of the ship, but no evidence of the killer had turned up. It wasn't until they announced that the captain's credit accounts had all been drained that she knew _exactly_ who the responsible party was. A part of her worried that the bounty hunter would return to finish things with her after he had taken care of the pirates, but it had been a little over a year with no sign of him. She had allowed herself to relax just the slightest bit, knowing she was still on Fett's list but deciding she would deal with him when he next appeared.

The Jedi surfaced from her thoughts and groaned when she realized _who_ she had been idly thinking about. She lifted her cup to take another sip of caf only to find it empty.

"Are you okay, Nikita," Ooma asked having heard the younger woman's groan of dismay.

"Fine," Nikita answered, shooting her empty cup a dirty look. "Just had some annoying thoughts crop up." She glanced up to see pink streaks beginning to decorate the sky and turned back to Ooma. "I've got to get to work. Can I get another cup to go, please?"

"Two in one hour," Ooma remarked with a smile. "That's not like you at all."

"Well today I think I'm going to need all the caffeine I can get," Nikita answered with a grin as she raised her new cup in farewell. The grin was wiped from her face in an instant, however, when the force gave a sudden pulse of warning around her. The Jedi froze, scanning the area, but didn't spot anything out of the ordinary. She picked up her pace to get to Chalmun's, hoping the warning was nothing serious but knowing otherwise in her gut.

The minute she stepped foot in the bar area the force pulsed another warning, stronger this time. The knight cast a quick glance around the room for any sign of bounty hunters hiding in the corners, or rather one particular bounty hunter, before scolding herself.

"I'm getting too paranoid," she muttered as she walked behind the bar. Wuher stepped out of one of the back rooms, greeting her with his usual morning grunt when he spotted her. She busied herself filling the ice bin and organizing the glasses, but her mind was still trying to puzzle out the warnings she had felt. She was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't notice the footsteps at the entrance at first. When she did she stiffened until she saw that it was only Calo, looking _way_ too cheerful for so early in the morning.

"Hey baby," he said as he slid onto a bar stool. "You look frazzled. Have a rough night last night?"

Nikita glared at him. She was _not_ in the mood to deal with the obnoxious teen this morning.

"Isn't it a bit early for you," she asked, hoping he would take the hint and leave. He didn't.

"I'm just tryin' to get a piece o' the action, honey," Calo said with a cheeky grin. "Speakin' o' action, you doin' anythin' tonight?"

Before Nikita could tell the boy off Wuher stepped up beside her and leaned across the bar, getting in the boy's face.

"Why don't you go home and come back when we're awake enough to deal with you."

Calo let out a nervous laugh and leaned away from the older man, almost falling off his stool when he tried to get up and run out the door.

"Thank you," Nikita sighed as she rubbed her now aching head. Wuher let out a grunt as he went back to cleaning glasses.

"I don't see why you don't kick that obnoxious shit out on his ass," he said in a gruff, irritated voice.

"He might like it too much," she replied flatly. "And despite the fact that he's annoying and seems to have no tact whatsoever he doesn't do any real damage."

Another grunt was all she got in response and the two finished prepping the bar in silence.

* * *

Nikita sat behind the bar about ready to beat her head against the countertop. This had to be the slowest day she had ever seen in the cantina since she had been working there. The knight took a sip of her caf, making a face when she realized it had gotten cold, and propped her chin on her hand. They had seen maybe ten customers since opening and it was almost double noon. She had tried turning on the holonews but had shut it off immediately when she saw that the Empire was broadcasting about the remaining bounties on Jedi's heads.

The quiet and caffeine had done nothing to help her figure out what the force was trying to warn her about and she closed her eyes in an attempt to sense anything that would give her a clue. The very air felt tense around her, like a bowstring about to snap. Whatever was about to happen was going to be drastic, but all she could tell from the way the force buzzed around her was that she was going to be at the center of it.

That was not a comforting thought.

The sound of someone calling her name out in panic snapped Nikita from her thoughts and she looked up to see Ooma come running into the cantina. The poor Twi'leck ran up to the knight, looking as though she'd seen a ghost. Tears streamed down her face and she was shaking uncontrollably. The woman's distraught appearance set the Jedi's senses on high alert and she vaulted over the bar to reach Ooma faster. The poor Twi'leck tried to tell Nikita what was wrong but she couldn't get any words out past her sobs. Nikita grabbed Ooma's shoulders, steering her to sit on one of the stools and shouting at Wuher to bring her a glass of water.

"Okay Ooma," Nikita said after the woman had taken several swallows of water. "Try and tell me what's wrong."

"I-its Oito," the Twi'leck responded, taking a shaky breath. "I went home to check on him a-and the house had been broken into and—," she broke off with a sob.

"It's okay," Nikita said in a soft voice as she urged the woman to drink more water. "The house was broken into, so where was Oito?"

"Gone," Ooma sobbed. "It looked like he fought but they still took him!" She reached into her purse and pulled out a datapad, her hands shaking so bad she almost dropped it. "T-this was o-on the table."

Nikita took the datapad from her. It was one of the disposable models, making it impossible to trace. The screen was locked to display a short message.

[If you ever want to see the boy alive again come to these coordinates alone, Jedi.]

She sat and stared at the datapad, feeling the force weigh down on her shoulders as it echoed in warning around her. She read the message several times over. Someone was stooping awfully low to get at her, knowing Ooma would come to her for help. She immediately thought of Fett, but this didn't feel like his style. If he hadn't agreed with Toto torturing her she couldn't see him kidnapping a child to lure her out of hiding.

"How long ago did you find Oito gone," she asked, looking back up at Ooma.

"O-only a little bit ago. Maybe ten minutes… Oh Nikita! What am I going to do? I don't know any Jedi! I'm never going to see Oito again!" She broke down sobbing once more and Nikita felt like her heart had dropped into her stomach. This was her fault. She placed her hands on Ooma's shoulders causing the older woman to look up at her.

"I swear to you, Ooma, I will do everything in my power to get Oito back safe."

"You mean you're going out there to meet them? Alone? But… you're not a Jedi! I've never even seen you carry a blaster!"

"Please, Ooma, you have to trust me on this," Nikita replied in a calm voice. "Now, do you have a vehicle I can borrow?"

* * *

She sped through the desert, pushing the speeder bike Ooma had lent her to well beyond its recommended limit. Safety was the least of her concerns right now. Her only objective was getting Oito back alive and in one piece.

The coordinates provided led her out to the middle of the Jundland Wastes, near Hanter's Gorge. She knew the area well enough to know there was nothing of note out there. It was far from any of Tatooine's cities making it a perfect ambush site. She arrived at the meeting location to find it was on top of a large, barren plateau. There was only one way in and out of the area and she slowed the speeder bike to a crawl, keeping an eye out for any traps or surprise attacks. None came and she continued to the top of the plateau, stopping when she spotted three figures standing out in the open waiting for her. She shut down the speeder and made her way toward them at a cautious pace, her lightsaber in hand. They were bounty hunters; that much she could tell. The one on the left she recognized from her days during the war: Cad Bane, dressed in his trademark brown duster and wide brimmed hat. The other was an assassin droid who had Oito in a headlock and a blaster pressed to the boy's head. Nikita's eyes flicked past them, scanning the area for any signs of a ship. She didn't see any and she glanced up at a cliff that rose above where they were standing on the opposite end of the plateau. It was possible they had hidden their ship up there, but she didn't have time to dwell on it.

"That's close enough, Jedi," Bane said when she was within hearing distance. "I was beginning to think you weren't going to show up."

"I'm here for the boy."

"Don't worry, Jedi. My friend has been taking good care of him," Bane responded.

Nikita looked over at Oito and smiled, attempting to reassure him. "Are you okay, Oito? They haven't hurt you, have they?"

"No," the young red Twi'leck shook his head as much as the droids arm would let him. "I'm scared, Nikita."

"It's going to be okay. You'll be back with your mom in no time. Just trust me, okay?" The boy nodded and she turned back to Bane, her smile hardening into a glare. "You've got what you wanted, bounty hunter. Now let him go."

Bane let out a chuckle. "Oh I don't think so, Jedi. First get rid of that lightsaber."

"And if I refuse?"

"Then I feel obliged to advise you that IG-97 here tends to have an itchy trigger finger."

The assassin droid tightened its grip around Oito's neck and pressed its blaster harder against his head, causing the boy to let out a whimper. Nikita's eyes narrowed as she watched the droid before turning her attention back to Bane. The Duros crossed his arms and stared back in challenge.

"If you kill the boy you lose all your leverage against me," the knight said in an even tone.

"Are you willing to bet the boy's life on that, Jedi," Bane asked.

"No, but I'm willing to bet my own," she answered, bursting into motion. In an instant she ripped the blaster from the droid's grip with a vicious force pull, actually tearing the droids arm off with it and flinging it at Bane, causing him to duck. She raised her other hand and balled it into a fist. The assassin droid began to spark and shake as its chassis caved in; its other arm loosening enough that Oito was able to wriggle free.

"Get behind me, Oito," Nikita shouted as she saw Bane draw his blaster pistols. With another swift twist of her wrist the Jedi picked up the offline droids frame and threw it into Bane, knocking him to the ground. She cast a quick glance behind her to check on where Oito was when the force echoed in sudden warning around her. The knight whipped back around, attempting to ready her lightsaber, but the warning had come too late.

Something slammed into her right shoulder, the force of the blow knocking her off her feet and spinning her around. She landed several feet back from where she had been standing, just barely managing to keep her face from smashing into the ground. Pain shot through her shoulder, arm, and neck like lightning, causing her arms to collapse under her weight. She became vaguely aware of someone screaming her name but before she could attempt to look she felt a boot kick under her ribs and roll her onto her back. The knight sucked in a sharp breath as pain coursed through her body at the sudden motion and looked up to see Bane standing over her with one of his pistols aimed at her head.

"That was a very stupid move, Jedi," he ground out through clenched teeth. "You're lucky you're worth more alive."

Nikita watched as he looked past her and motioned with his free hand.

"Come here, boy, and bring me the Jedi's lightsaber!"

She heard the sound of footsteps and Oito came into view. The boy hesitantly held her lightsaber out to Bane who snatched it from his hands.

"Good boy. Now help the Jedi to her feet."

To Nikita's surprise Bane walked away from her, but when she lifted her head to get a better look she saw that he had only walked a few feet away and still had his blaster trained on her.

"Aurra, get down here," he said into his wrist comm. Nikita let her head fall back to the ground. So there had been a third bounty hunter. Why had the warning come so late? A sniffle to her right caught her attention and she glanced over to see Oito with tears streaming down his face.

"You're bleeding," he whimpered.

Nikita pushed herself up to a sitting position with Oito's help and began examining the damage to her shoulder. The hit had gone clean through and since what she could see of the exit wound was almost twice as big as the entry she knew whatever had hit her wasn't an ordinary blaster bolt. Blood had already soaked through her vest across most of her shoulder area and was running down her arm.

"I'm okay, Oito. It's not as bad as it looks," she said, trying to calm the boy. She placed her good hand over the wound and closed her eyes in an attempt to sense the extent of the damage. The bullet had managed to miss both bone and arteries somehow, but she wasn't going to be able to use that arm any time soon. She began trying to heal her wound enough to stem the bleeding but the crack of a blaster shattered her concentration. She opened her eyes to see a smoking hole in the sand next to her leg and looked over at Bane.

"Don't even think about it, Jedi," he said. "Unless you want me to add to that hole in your shoulder."

Nikita glared at him and lowered her hand, wiping it on her pants to try and get the blood off. The sudden thrum of an engine caused her to look past Bane to see a small silver freighter appear over the ridge of the cliff in the distance and maneuver down to land several yards from where he was standing. No sooner had it landed than the ramp dropped down and a tall woman with pale white skin in an orange jumpsuit walked off the ship and over to them. As she neared Nikita noticed the wicked looking slugthrower rifle slung across her back and her eyes narrowed. So that was what she had been shot with, but _why_ had the warning come so _late_? The woman reached Bane and looked over in her direction and she felt the faintest echo of the force. So _that_ was how. She was force sensitive and had hidden her presence.

"What took you so long earlier," Bane asked.

"I would've shot sooner but the Jedi kept moving," the woman, whom Nikita assumed to be Aurra, shot her a dirty look before turning back to Bane. "What about 97?"

"Dead," he answered motioning to the offline assassin droid a few feet away.

"Oh well, more for us. Let's cuff her and get off this rock."

"Here," Bane said as he tossed a pair of stasis cuffs to her. "I'll cover you. Leave the boy."

Oito let out another whimper and clung to Nikita as Aurra started toward them. She had only taken a few steps when Nikita saw her pause and glance up at the sky with a frown. It was then the Jedi heard the low rumble of another ship approaching.

"Well, well," Aurra remarked. "Looks like we have company." As soon as the words had left her mouth her eyes narrowed and she yelled at Bane to move as the ground between them and Nikita was bombarded with blaster cannon fire.


	15. Chapter 15

I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Fifteen

Nikita had twisted around to shield Oito when the ship had begun strafing the ground between them and the bounty hunters. It stopped almost as soon as it started, however, and she chanced a glance around. The bombardment had stirred up a thick cloud of dust, obscuring everything outside of a two foot radius, but the Jedi could hear Bane and Aurra shouting to each other from the far side of the cloud. Remembering Bane taking her lightsaber she held out her good arm and closed her eyes, trying to get a fix on her weapon. She succeeded and felt the familiar grip of her lightsaber fly into her palm but her triumph was cut short when an iron-like grip closed around her wrist. Her head snapped to her left and she found herself staring into a T-shaped visor. The knight felt her breath catch in surprise at the sudden appearance of the Mandalorian and sensed Oito stiffen next to her.

"Not _you_ too," she groaned in exasperation.

Fett didn't answer, instead releasing her wrist and taking her lightsaber from her grasp. She watched with a sinking feeling as her weapon once again disappeared from her reach. She wouldn't be able to fight Fett even if he _had_ let her keep her weapon. Her dominant arm was useless right now and though she could fight with her offhand it put her at a severe disadvantage when it came to speed and mobility. She still had to protect Oito as well, putting her at the mercy of the bounty hunter's demands.

Nikita kept her eyes glued to Fett's visor, trying to gauge what his next move was going to be. He didn't move from his kneeling position beside her and she could see his rifle resting against his left shoulder. Was he here to join up with Bane and Aurra? That wouldn't make sense for him to open fire on them if he was planning on working with them to capture her. No, more likely he was here to try and capture her before they could.

Fett held his free hand out to her again and Nikita stared at him with a raised brow.

"Your splicing tool," he said when it became clear she didn't know what he wanted.

Nikita glared at him and reached into her boot, pulling the datapad out and slapping it into his palm with more force than necessary. She watched as he stowed that away before he reached back over and unclipped her ship communicator from her wrist.

"Really," she asked in a flat tone.

"I'm not falling for that again, Jedi," he answered evenly.

He reached out and gripped her upper arm, pulling her up with him when he stood. She saw his helmet turn the slightest bit down toward Oito before he looked back at her.

"Let's go."

Nikita was pulled forward, every step sending a jarring pain through her wound. She felt a small tug on her vest and looked down to see Oito looking over at Fett.

"Where are we going," the young Twi'leck asked her in a quiet voice.

"The same place we would be going with the other bounty hunters, Oito. Nothing's changed," she answered in an apologetic tone. She hadn't wanted to frighten the boy but their chances of escape had dwindled to almost nonexistent when Fett had shown up.

"I'm taking the boy back to Mos Eisley," the Mandalorian said.

Nikita looked up at Fett in surprise to see his visor trained on her.

"It's your fault he's in this situation in the first place, Jedi."

"What," she growled, pulling to a halt. "I was trying to save him if you haven't noticed."

Fett's grip on her arm tightened as he pulled her around to fully face him.

"Jedi bring nothing but trouble and that trouble results in other people getting killed," he snarled.

"Don't you dare preach to me about getting people killed when the Empire is the one signing your paychecks, bounty hunter," she hissed back.

Tense silence fell over them and Nikita realized just how close she was standing to the hunter. Fog spread across the bottom part of his visor with every breath she let out, disappearing just as fast in the sweltering heat of the planets twin suns. She couldn't see through the visor but she still felt the icy glare he was shooting her. A chill ran through her as the force hummed in the air around them, the tautness she felt earlier having intensified several notches. The knight tried to pull away from him, suddenly becoming very uncomfortable in such a close proximity to him. The bounty hunter's grip didn't let up and he tugged on her arm to keep her rooted to the spot. She heard him inhale to say something but a small squeak caused them both to look over to see Oito staring at them with wide eyes. Nikita sensed the boy's fear but she noticed it was quickly being replaced by curiosity, making her even more aware of how close she and Fett were. She saw Fett's visor turn back to her out of the corner of her eye and she looked back at him, telling herself that the sudden heat in her cheeks was because she'd been out in the sun too long. She heard him let out a slow exhale.

"This conversation is over," he said in a low tone.

"Aw, am I interrupting something personal," a condescending female voice rang out across the space they were in.

Nikita saw Fett stiffen and she felt the sudden animosity roll off of him as he looked over at the pale woman from earlier.

"Aurra," he ground out.

Aurra let out a cold laugh. "Oh Boba, what _would_ your father say?"

Fett let go of Nikita and turned to fully face Aurra. The knight looked over at Oito, motioning for the boy to come stand closer to her and trying to ignore the sudden ghost sensation of the bounty hunter's hand on her arm. The cloud of dust was slowly dissipating, revealing the full extent of the damage the Slave I's cannons had done. Nikita saw that an entire section of the plateau had been sheared away, leaving the cliff's new edge only a few steps away from where she, Fett, and Oito were standing. She looked up to point this out to the Mandalorian but stopped when she saw Bane land several yards to Fett's right, effectively pinning them against the cliff's edge.

"I would say kidnapping a child to lure out the Jedi is low for even you two," Fett said as he cast a glance over at Bane before looking back at Aurra. "But I'm not surprised."

Nikita watched a sneer spread across Aurra's face at his words.

"Of course, _Boba_ ," the sniper said in a condescending tone. "You never had the _stomach_ for the dirty jobs back then. Didn't I teach you anything about being a bounty hunter?"

"You taught me that I'm best working alone instead of with people who will abandon me to save their own ass," Fett growled so low that Nikita actually took a step away from him.

Aurra's eyes flicked from Fett to Nikita and back before she called over to Bane, "Go get the ship. I'll handle this."

The Duros hesitated for a few seconds before activating the thrusters on his boots and heading back to their ship. Aurra waited until he was out of range before crossing her arms and resting her weight on her left leg in a cocky stance.

"You know, Boba, the Jedi is still a decent payoff split three ways. I'm even willing to forgive you for shooting at us earlier."

"The Jedi is _my_ target," he replied without hesitation. "I'll only give you one chance to leave, Aurra."

"I thought you might say that," she sneered. "Well, Boba, I hope you can find enough pieces of her left to turn in!"

Without warning the sniper lunged forward and threw her hand out, sending the nearby assassin droid's frame hurtling through the air toward Nikita. The knight turned and pushed Oito out of the way right before the droid's heavy frame crashed into her, sending her over the side of the cliff.

Nikita heard Oito scream her name as she fell over the side and she saw Fett look over the edge, his form growing smaller by the second. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see the cliff face flying by, and listened to the wind rushing past her ears.

There was no coming back from this.

She could only hope that Fett would return Oito to his mother as he had said. At least the Empire wouldn't get their hands on her, not alive anyway.

Something wrapped tightly around her right wrist and before she could open her eyes to see what it was she was brought to a violent halt from her free fall. She let out a scream of pain as her arm was almost wrenched from its socket and felt fresh blood seep from her wound. The Jedi looked up to see a fibercord grapple line wrapped around her wrist and couldn't stop the ragged laugh of relief that passed her lips. She reached up and grabbed hold of the cord with her other hand, swinging toward the cliff face. She managed to find purchase and crouched down, coiling her body tight as a spring and jumped.

Nikita cleared the edge of the cliff by a good ten feet and glanced down in time to see Fett's helmet snap up in her direction. The knight turned her attention back to Aurra, who was now standing on the loading ramp of her ship as it rose into the air. The Jedi sent out a massive force push that knocked the ship to the side, sending Aurra tumbling back into the cargo bay right as she tossed something at Fett. Nikita landed several yards away and spun around to see what the sniper had thrown only to be blown back by a sudden explosion. She hit the ground hard, knocking the breath from her lungs, and could only hear ringing in her ears as small fragments of dirt and stone rained down on and around her. She pushed herself up with effort, temporarily forgetting about her wounded shoulder, and stumbled forward. Her hearing cleared before the dust did and she heard Oito's panicked cry for help. The knight broke into a sprint to reach him but skidded to a shocked halt when he came into view.

Oito was kneeling by Fett, looking scared but otherwise unharmed. Nikita's eyes swept from the boy to the unmoving hunter, feeling the tension in the force finally snap as she saw the entire left side of his chest peppered with shrapnel holes and stained dark red.

"He saved me," Oito said, looking up at her in tears. "He pulled me behind him and shielded me before the grenade went off."

Nikita quickly found her voice, tearing her eyes away from the growing pool of blood underneath the bounty hunter. "Oito, go to the speeder bike I drove here and see if you can find a medkit or anything we can use!"

The boy took off and she closed the distance between her and Fett, kneeling down and reaching for his side. She instead found herself staring down the barrel of his rifle. Fett had managed to prop himself up on his other elbow but she could see the tremors in his body as he struggled to remain that way.

"Don't… don't touch me, Jedi," he growled.

"You need help."

"Not from you." He began coughing and Nikita had heard that sound enough during the war to know he was coughing up blood. She lunged forward and grabbed his rifle, forcing it up in the air and wincing when it went off. She placed her other hand on his chest and pushed him back to the ground while she twisted his rifle from his grip and tossed it behind her. Fett fell back under the pressure from her hand, too weak to fight her, and she reached for his helmet. She felt him stiffen as her fingers swept under the edge, searching for the release switch, and she hoped Mandalorian helmets were similar to the clone troopers. The knight was rewarded with a click as she found the release switch and she pulled his helmet off, being careful not to let his head fall back too hard. She was greeted with a glare but it was too weak to hold the hunter's usual iciness. Fett's eyes were clouded with pain and he had blood on his lips, confirming her earlier suspicion.

Nikita sat his helmet to the side and turned back to him, gently placing her hands against his chest and ignoring his hiss of pain and weak attempt to move away from her. Though his armor had protected most of his front and back he had taken the brunt of the grenade blast to his side. Her senses were almost overwhelmed from the amount of internal damage he'd sustained and she pulled her hands away as if she'd been burned. She was no medic. She only knew basic force healing. Mending simple bone breaks or stopping nonlethal wounds from bleeding long enough to get someone _to_ a medic. This was too far beyond her. Even attempting to heal him would be too risky because of the high chance of sealing shrapnel inside vital areas and causing further damage.

She looked up to check on Oito's progress and saw the young Twi'leck racing back to them with a small medkit in his hands. There would be bandages in it but nowhere near enough to stem the hunter's bleeding. They had to get him to a hospital, which meant he had to be stabilized, which meant she was going to have to risk healing him enough to stem the blood loss. She glanced at his face. He had closed his eyes but she could tell he was still conscious by how pinched and drawn his features were. The knight focused on his lifeline through the force. It was growing fainter by the second. She wouldn't even have enough time to attempt to heal him, unless…

Nikita bit her lip as an idea came to her. She remembered reading about it briefly but she wasn't sure she would be able to do it. Her eyes swept over Fett's side again before settling back on his face. He would die if she didn't try and he would die if she tried and failed.

"Fett," she said with uncertainty as Oito plopped down beside her. The hunter opened his eyes and focused on her as much as he could.

"I might be able to heal you enough to get you to a hospital," she went on. "But I'm going to need time you don't have unless… unless you let me anchor your mind with my own."

Even though he was in excruciating pain and on death's doorstep Fett still managed to look at her like she had lost her mind.

"No," he groaned.

"It's the only way I can save you," she replied with more force than she had intended.

"I'll die before… I let you in… my head, Jedi." His breathing had become more ragged as he spoke and she could see he was struggling to keep his eyes open. He had lost too much blood. He was going to lose consciousness and that would be it. The Jedi tried to think of another way, but Fett was running out of time and she was drawing a blank. They had to do this now but she wasn't going to make a move without his consent.

"Please, Boba," she whispered.

He watched her with unfocused eyes and she wondered if the blood loss had begun making him delirious. Her suspicion was confirmed when he let his head fall back and closed his eyes, managing to get out one word. "Fine."

Nikita acted quickly, turning to Oito.

"Oito, I need you to come here and put pressure on his side to try and slow the bleeding as much as you can. Use some of the bandages if you need to. I also need you to keep quiet. Don't get my attention unless we're about to be attacked. Don't worry about telling me what his condition is either. I'll be aware of it."

"O-okay," the young Twi'leck stammered as he took her place and pressed his hands to Fett's side. "Is he going to die?"

"Not if I can help it," she responded as she repositioned up by the bounty hunter's head. Fett had already passed out.

She was running out of time.

The Jedi placed her hand on his forehead, closing her eyes and letting her consciousness flow into his mind. Nikita would be lying if she had said she wasn't nervous. Entering someone's mind wasn't the same as planting suggestions or sensing thoughts. It was very dangerous for both parties and was rarely used between Jedi. That being said, she had no idea if it would even work with a non-force user.

Even unconscious the bounty hunter's essence was dominating and she sensed a prickly, begrudging sliver of acceptance as to why she was invading his private domain. The rest was a growing open threat that she had better get the hell out while she was still able. Knowing that she didn't have much time and not having any real desire to invade the hunter's mind any more than she was she pressed farther to find a good anchor point. As strong as his mind was she could sense Fett losing his grip. His consciousness was being drawn out like the tide, pulled farther and farther away from her. He needed an anchor; a central point to focus on, grab hold of, and not let go. She was going to give him that.

The Jedi found the spot where he would be most able to coalesce and rooted herself in his mind. She had guessed the action would go up like a beacon when she did, but she hadn't planned on how fast the bounty hunter would respond. Fett's presence surrounded her in a matter of seconds, overwhelming her senses so much that she almost lost her own grip on the anchor she had created. Before she could recover the hunter's memories and emotions slammed into her. She caught a glimpse of a man who looked just like Boba in silver and blue armor confronting a much younger Obi-Wan and the two of them fighting. She realized this must be Boba's father Jango and felt the pain, fear, and anger as she watched Mace Windu execute him in the very next memory. The memories continued, showing glimpses from the war up till now. In the back of her mind Nikita noticed how each of these memories involved one of Boba's encounters with either Jedi or Sith and realized it must be in reaction to her being in his mind. She saw the memories of all of her encounters with the hunter, all filled with irritation, but slowly being laced with an undercurrent of something she couldn't put into words as the memories built up to their most recent argument moments ago.

The knight tried to steel herself against the onslaught of memories and emotions that didn't belong to her, attempting to disentangle herself from Fett's consciousness. Something stirred in the back of her mind and she froze, recognizing the hunter's presence. Unease began to build as she remembered the link worked both ways. She had unwittingly granted him access to her mind. His consciousness had overwhelmed her so fast earlier that she had been too disoriented to notice it flow across the link between them.

She felt it now though. Fett's consciousness unfurled with all the grace of a large, predatory cat flexing its claws. His essence exuded a certain uncharacteristic amount of smugness at catching her off guard in her own mind before it was replaced with prickling animosity. A single thought echoed out at such a low frequency it reverberated through her with a growl.

_Get. Out._

The bounty hunter's consciousness swept out of her mind and back across the link like lightning, sending a backlash of current through her. Nikita's eyes flew open and she let out a gasp as she came back to her senses. White hot needles of pain shot up the left side of her chest and she let out a pained grunt as she barely caught herself from falling on top of the unconscious Mandalorian in front of her.

"Are you okay," she heard Oito ask to her left.

"Fine," she ground out as she pushed the pain to the back of her mind. Her side wasn't injured, Fett's was. Maybe it was a side effect from being in his mind.

She took up position beside Oito and placed her hands against the hunter's side, feeling the unexplained pain in her own side increase to almost unbearable levels. The knight gritted her teeth and put all her focus into healing as much of the damage as she dared. When she was certain Fett's bleeding had been stemmed enough to attempt to move him she sat back with a pained sigh. A slight rustling caused her to look over at Oito who was staring back in concern.

"Are you sure you're okay," the young Twi'leck asked in a skeptical tone.

"I'm fine," she replied with a strained smile. "Just tired. Now help me get these bandages on him."

She had been right when she'd guessed the bandages wouldn't be enough. By the time they had managed to get the gauze on him blood had already begun to soak through the few layers. Thinking quickly, she unbuckled her vest and tied it around the Mandalorian's chest as an extra layer of both pressure and protection.

"Okay," she said as she put Fett's helmet back on him. "Help me get him to the speeder bike."

"Where are we going?"

"Mos Espa. I have a friend who's a doctor there."

Now she just had to get the three of them there alive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: So ironically enough I wrote this chapter a few days before my husband got me to sit down and watch The Last Jedi, so while there may be some similarities between the force bond in the movie and the life bond in my story it isn't my intention for there to be.


	16. Chapter 16

I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Sixteen

To his credit Dr. Thurum didn't bat an eye at the sight of a Jedi and a Twi'leck child dragging a half-dead Mandalorian bounty hunter through the doors of his clinic. He ushered them to a back room where several of his staff helped Nikita put Fett onto an operating table. The Jedi collapsed into a nearby chair the minute the hunter was taken off her hands. The drive there had been difficult and slow and Fett was so heavy in his armor that she had needed to use the force to help carry him. That, mixed with her shoulder wound and the stressful time she had spent trying to keep Fett alive had taken its toll on her. Oito plopped down next to her, just as exhausted from the day's events.

Dr. Thurum walked in, heading straight for Fett while he barked for someone to take care of Nikita's shoulder. A nurse approached her to take her to a separate room but the knight refused, stating she would wait until they were done with Fett. This earned her a strange look from Thurum but the doctor kept silent. Nikita and Oito were nevertheless shepherded from the room so the doctor could prepare the bounty hunter for surgery. The Jedi had already made sure to take her lightsaber and other belongings back from the Mandalorian's person. Thurum knew she was a Jedi but his staff was a different story. She didn't want to draw any unnecessary attention. Once in the hall she told Oito to go and call his mother, knowing Ooma would be worried sick, before sliding down the wall and resting her head back in the first true moment of quiet she'd had all day.

Several agonizing hours later she was sitting very still while Dr. Thurum applied a healthy dose of bacta to her shoulder before picking up a nearby roll of gauze and wrapping it around the wound and across her chest. Though the doctor was getting on in years he still had the steadiest hands of anyone she knew of. He also had no love for the Empire, making him a valuable ally.

Thurum finished bandaging her up and stepped back, examining his work before shooting her a pointed look.

"You, young lady, are very fortunate," he said before walking over to wash his hands.

"I just got a hole blown through my shoulder. I'm not seeing too much good fortune in that," Nikita answered dryly as she glanced down at the bandages. "If I had sensed it sooner I wouldn't be sitting here right now."

"So you say, but you were shot with a slug that somehow managed not to hit any bones or arteries. I've seen men who've had their arm ripped completely off by a shot from that rifle type and they weren't Jedi. I don't pretend to understand how you Jedi work but I have a hard time believing you didn't have some influence over that wound, even on a subconscious level."

Nikita stared at him as he began putting his tools in the nearby containers to be sanitized. She hadn't been aware of any influencing on her part, but she still had her arm so she'd count her blessings.

"How is your other patient," she asked. She had been about to say Boba's name but something made her stop.

"Oh, you mean the most infamous bounty hunter in the galaxy that you just so happened to drag through my front door," Thurum replied with a raised brow. "Really now, Nikita, I may be old but I'm not senile. I know his reputation and I know your past. As to your exact relationship with each other, well, that's none of my business."

The comment was innocent enough but Nikita felt her face grow hot when she thought back to everything that had transpired with the bounty hunter before they got to the clinic.

"Can you please just tell me if he's okay," she asked, burying her face in her hands to try and hide her burning cheeks.

"He's fine now. He took a lot of shrapnel but we were able to remove all of it. His battle mesh kept most of it from penetrating too deeply into his chest cavity. There was no major damage to his internal organs and with proper bacta treatment he should be up in two to three weeks. I'm having my staff keep an eye on him in case he suffers a lung collapse from the trauma or surgery but all in all I would say your bounty hunter has a very good guardian angel looking after him."

The term "your bounty hunter" wasn't lost on Nikita but she ignored it and hopped off the table. She was about to say something but was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Come in," Thurum called.

The door opened and one of the nurses stepped inside. "Doctor, the young boy who came in with them has been checked out. His mother's arrived to get him and she wishes to speak with Miss Solaris."

"Well go on then," Thurum waved his hand at Nikita. He had become grumpy in his old age. "Just don't move that arm too much!"

Nikita followed the nurse out to the reception room and was directed outside. The knight found Ooma and Oito standing in the shade of the clinic's front canopy.

"Nikita," Ooma greeted in a flat voice. She did not look happy and Nikita could sense the anger radiating from her.

"Ooma."

A tense silence fell between them and it was several minutes before Ooma spoke again.

"Oito told me what happened. He told me who you brought back," she said as she glanced at the door leading to the clinic as though she were wishing the building would spontaneously combust.

"Is that what has you upset," Nikita asked in a wary tone.

Ooma's bright green eyes snapped back to her and darkened with anger. "Yes, that's what has me upset! That and the fact that you didn't tell me what you were! Why didn't you tell me, Nikita?"

"Because I didn't want to put you in danger that's why," the Jedi bit back.

"Oh and that worked out real well," Ooma retorted. "My son is kidnapped by bounty hunters because of you and then you have the _nerve_ to bring one of _them_ back with you!"

"Boba had nothing to do with this," Nikita growled. "He showed up after the fact and if it wasn't for him neither me nor Oito would be here right now!"

"It's true, Mom," Oito chimed in. "He saved me, and he saved Nikita before—"

"Be quiet, Oito," Ooma snapped, silencing the young boy in an instant. She turned her attention back to Nikita. "I am aware of what he did but that doesn't change what he's done or who he is. He's the most dangerous bounty hunter out there, Nikita! How could you even think of bringing him here! Of letting him so near Oito! I would think someone like _you_ , of all people, wouldn't have an issue leaving him!"

"How can you say that? My job is to protect people! I couldn't walk away and leave him out there to die!"

"What is he to you?"

The question came out of nowhere, blindsiding Nikita and leaving her momentarily speechless.

"What," she managed to choke out when she found her voice again.

"What is he to you," Ooma asked with more force.

"I… guess you could say we're acquaintances," Nikita replied, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable with where this line of questioning was headed.

"You don't carry an 'acquaintance' halfway across the desert, Nikita. I've been married; I'm not stupid."

Nikita opened her mouth to protest the older woman's accusations but Ooma held up a hand, stopping her.

"I'm taking Oito home," she said in a voice that left no room for argument. "I don't think I want him around you or the company you keep."

Nikita watched her former friend pull Oito away by his hand toward the speeder bike parked across the street, feeling an icy numbness creep through her brain and limbs. She wasn't even aware that she was moving until she realized she was standing outside of Fett's room door. The knight stood motionless until a nurse snapped her out of her haze to ask her to move to the side and not block the door. She hesitated for a split second before following the nurse into the room.

The Jedi wasn't sure what she had been expecting to see but the sight that greeted her wasn't abnormal. Fett was still unconscious, though she knew that it was from sedation now instead of blood loss. He was hooked up to an IV and heart monitor and she watched as the nurse hooked up a new bag of blood to his IV pole and fed it into the proper line. She almost missed the nurse turning to her.

"Is there anything you need, Miss Solaris?"

"Hm? Oh, no, thank you."

The nurse gave a polite nod and left the room, the sound of the door closing echoing off the walls. Nikita stood at the foot of the bed for the longest time, studying the bounty hunter. A thin blanket hid most of his body from view but she could see a bacta wrap around his chest. His face wasn't drawn with pain anymore and she noted that this was the first time she had seen him actually look relaxed. The Jedi tore her eyes away from him and walked across the room to take up residence in one of the chairs against the wall. Once settled she closed her eyes and attempted to clear her mind. Her mind had other ideas, however. Her argument with Ooma plagued her like a broken recording.

_What is he to you?_

An acquaintance, her mind supplied a bit too quickly. It was more complicated than that though. He was a bounty hunter who hated Jedi and she was a Jedi who had managed to singlehandedly place herself at the top of his shit list. He kept coming after her and she kept managing to escape at the last second.

_You don't carry an 'acquaintance' halfway across the desert. I've been married; I'm not stupid._

She thought back to the argument she and Boba had gotten into just before they were confronted by Aurra. She had been made uncomfortable by their proximity just as she had been when they had been trapped in the Tusken Raider encampment, but something had been different this time. She remembered Oito's curiosity when he observed them arguing but chalked that up to him being seven and in fearful awe of being that close to the infamous bounty hunter.

A sharp twinge ran up the left side of her chest and she opened her eyes in time to see Fett's brow furrow just the slightest bit in his sleep. The pain was his, not hers. Had she made a mistake when she anchored his mind with her own? It was very likely. None of that had been like anything she had heard of before. The knight glanced over at the Mandalorian armor stacked in a neat pile in the corner. She had been overwhelmed by his consciousness when he converged around her and had experienced more of him than she had intended. Her mind replayed the scenes of each of their encounters over again and she remembered the feelings of irritation and… something else. Most unnerving of the whole situation was the fact that he had gained access to _her_ mind. Had he seen fragments of her memories and emotions as she had his? She hoped not. Fett had seemed more intent on just unnerving her in retaliation for being in his mind even though he had agreed to it.

Nikita closed her eyes again. She could still feel his presence in the back of her mind but it was faint. A residual side effect of the link she had formed to save him? It was supposed to be temporary so maybe it would fade away soon. She let out a sigh and let her head fall back against the wall, all hope of meditation gone in the face of so many nagging questions. Only one thing she was sure of: She had chosen to save Boba's life and it had cost her a close friend.


	17. Chapter 17

I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Seventeen

Almost two weeks had passed and Nikita found herself no closer to any answers. She had returned to Mos Eisley to go back to work but made the trip to Mos Espa every evening when she got off shift. She wasn't sure what compelled her to keep checking in on the bounty hunter. There was no doubt in her mind that he would raze the clinic to the ground to try and capture her if he woke up and she was there but she couldn't stay away. Maybe it was guilt, or maybe it was the knowledge that he risked his own life to save a child when he could have just as easily saved himself.

It was a compassion she hadn't thought him capable of.

Ooma refused to talk to her and she had given up after the third day of trying to make the older woman see reason. Ooma had also forbade Oito from speaking to Nikita, but the Jedi had seen him several times on her way to work and he had always waved when he spotted her. Today was no different except she was more preoccupied with her thoughts as she made her way to the cantina. It wasn't until she felt the tugging on her vest that she snapped from her thoughts and looked down to see Oito staring up at her.

"Oito, what are you doing? I don't think your mom wants you talking to me. I'd hate to get you in more trouble," she said as she squatted down to be closer to his eye level.

"I waved to you but you didn't see me," he responded with a small shrug, as if that were a valid excuse for ignoring his mother's wishes. "I wanted to tell you that we're leaving tomorrow. Mom says it's not safe here for us anymore. We're going to live with my uncle on Ryloth. I wanted to say goodbye."

Nikita held back her retort that Tatooine wasn't safe for anyone, but she knew the true meaning behind the words.

"I'm going to miss you, Oito," she said with a sad smile as she pulled him into a hug. "Take care of your mom and tell her I'm sorry."

"I still don't get why she's so angry," the young Twi'leck said as he pulled back and reached into his pocket. "I wanted to give you this as a thank you for saving me."

He handed her a necklace, nothing fancy. A simple brown leather cord that held a pendant carved from white wood. The pendant was in the shape of lekku that were intertwined around each other in a spiral.

"It's a symbol of our Goddess Kikalekki," he said as Nikita ran her thumb over the pendant. "She's said to protect all Twi'lecks, but I thought if I gave you that necklace she might protect you too."

The Jedi felt the corners of her eyes prick with tears and she pulled the boy into another hug.

"Thank you, Oito."

"I have to go now before Mom wonders where I am," he said, hugging her back. "Is Boba Fett going to be okay?"

"The doctor said he'll be fine," she replied with some surprise at the boy's question.

"No one told me," Oito responded with another shrug. "I was hoping he would be. He's scary but he doesn't seem that bad."

He waved to her and ran off into the crowd to find his mom. Nikita watched him go with a wry smile. A seven year old had just told her the most infamous bounty hunter in the galaxy didn't seem like that bad of a person. It was enough to make her laugh as she slipped the necklace over her head and adjusted it so it sat just below her collarbone.

The knight rose and continued on her way to work, allowing herself to slip back into her thoughts. Her mind went back to the image of Boba lying in the hospital bed.

_He's scary but he doesn't seem that bad._

The same wry smile crept back across her lips. She had made the right choice saving him and regardless of what came of that she couldn't regret her decision.

The foreign presence in the back of her mind stirred, causing her to refocus her attention to it. She knew it was Fett. She had felt the same dark, solid essence of the bounty hunter when she was in his mind. Instead of fading over time though his presence in her mind had only grown stronger. It had also become harder to ignore. Nevertheless the Jedi pushed it to a backburner as she stepped inside the cantina.

* * *

Nikita had just reached the clinic when a sudden wave of fury flared up in the back of her mind.

Boba had woken up.

She sprinted into the main room, ignoring the shocked look from the receptionist and ran down the hall toward the hunter's room. As she neared she could hear yelling from inside, something that sounded like "Where is she?" She threw open the door to see Boba dressed in his armor once again except for his helmet. He had Dr. Thurum backed in the corner with his rifle pointed at the older man.

"Boba stop," she shouted. She should have paid more attention to what Fett had been yelling. Apparently the "she" he was referring to was her because in the next few seconds he turned to her and pinned her to the wall with his forearm pressed against her throat.

Nikita let out a grunt as the impact sent a sharp twinge of pain through her still healing shoulder. Her eyes widened when she saw Fett's frown deepen and watched him glance down at his own shoulder before glancing to hers.

The pain was hers but he had felt it too.

His arm pressed harder against her throat as his eyes returned to hers, his irises darkening to almost black in anger. She could feel his barely contained rage, both through the force and in the back of her mind, but it was laced with growing unease. She brought her hands up to try and push his arm away but he didn't budge.

"What did you do to me, _Jedi_ ," he growled out in a strained voice.

"I don't… know," she choked out, pushing harder against his arm.

Fett still didn't move and she was about desperate enough to push him back with the force when he suddenly released her. She grabbed her throat, trying to suck air back into her lungs as she watched him for any sign of further attack. She still felt the hunter's rage but his unease was building almost to the point where it could be described as mild panic. She glanced down to see a slight tremor running through his hand before he clenched it into a fist.

Nikita had never seen or felt him so unnerved before, but she understood why. Boba was solitary and he valued his privacy. Now she, a Jedi of all people, had access to his every thought.

And he had access to hers.

She watched as he stood in tense silence, looking as though he was fighting the urge to shoot her right then and there. She hadn't wanted this. She still didn't regret saving him but if she had known this… mental link would be the result of her entering his mind to help him she would've tried to find another way.

He looked up at her suddenly and she realized he must have sensed her thoughts through the new connection between them. Instead of saying anything the hunter let out a shaky breath and burst into motion, grabbing his helmet from the table and bolting out the door.

"My goodness," Dr. Thurum exclaimed, finally moving from his position in the corner to Nikita's side. "Are you alright, Nikita?"

"Yes," she said, though she wasn't convinced of that. "I need to go."

She needed to talk to Obi-Wan.

* * *

The years had not been kind to her master. Stress had turned his hair white and added more than a few age lines to his face. Obi-Wan still had a spark in his blue eyes but Nikita had watched that spark dim as she told him about her most recent encounter with Boba Fett. Silence settled between them when she finished. Obi-Wan sat rigid in his chair, arms crossed, brow furrowed, the tea he had brewed sitting untouched in front of him, growing colder by the minute.

"Nikita, do you realize what you've done," he asked in a soft, angry voice.

The knight was taken aback at his tone. She had only ever made him this mad once or twice during her time as a padawan.

"I was just trying to help," she said, looking down at her hands. Her head snapped back up when Obi-Wan stood abruptly, almost knocking his chair backwards.

"Trying to help? He's a bounty hunter, Nikita! He works for the Empire! They want you dead!"

"So I was just supposed to leave him to die in the desert," she snapped back.

The guardian let out an aggravated sigh and ran a hand over his face.

"What's done is done," he said. All the anger had gone out of him. Now he just sounded tired. "It was your choice to make, not mine. I take more issue with your methods. You know how dangerous tampering with someone's mind is without proper training!"

"I know, master, but it was the only thing I could think of! I didn't have time to try anything else! He was dying," she said this last sentence so soft it caused Obi-Wan to shoot her a strange look.

"Tell me, did Fett agree to let you into his mind," the guardian asked as he reached up to stroke his beard in thought.

"Not at first."

"But he _did_ agree?"

"Eventually… Begrudgingly," Nikita answered, wondering what that had to do with anything. A sigh caused her to look back up at her former mentor.

"Nikita, what you've done… there's a reason there are hardly any records about it. Fett is a non-force user. You created a link to him, to his mind, with the force and he agreed to it. No matter how begrudging his acceptance may have been he still agreed and let you into his mind willingly."

"Yes, and?"

"You created a life bond with him, Nikita. It's permanent."

She felt the color drain from her face. Permanent? She was stuck with this mental connection to the bounty hunter for the rest of her life?

"But what about the phantom pains and—"

"All signs of a life bond," Obi-Wan interrupted her. "Because yours was accidental it sounds like it's rather weak. Consider yourself fortunate. The few records there were spoke of intentional bonds so strong the two could communicate telepathically and were always aware of the others location."

The knight slumped back in her chair in a daze. "There must be some way to break it?"

"I'm afraid not," he replied with a shake of his head. "That's what made life bonds so dangerous. It isn't like a normal force bond. The connection is much more complex and intimate. The only thing strong enough to break it is death."

"Death?" Nikita had thought all the color was drained from her face already, but she was pretty sure she turned several shades paler.

"Yes, and because your life lines are connected now if one of you dies the other follows."

The knight buried her face into her hands with a groan. "Why am I being punished for doing what I felt was right." Her only answer was the sound of a chair being pulled closer and then she felt a firm hand on her shoulder.

"Perhaps," Obi-Wan said in a thoughtful tone. "You are thinking about it from the wrong perspective."

She pulled her hands down and stared at him with a raised brow. "Let's see, I've just established a life bond with a Jedi hating bounty hunter who works for the Empire and whom has a serious grudge against me and everything I represent. How am I supposed to view that?"

"Sass me if you want," Obi-Wan replied with a hard look. "But this path was chosen for you for a reason. I must admit your encounters with him have always been a bit bizarre. Perhaps your fates are more intertwined than you know. Your trust in the Force has brought you this far. Don't give up on it now."

* * *

She sat on the sad excuse for a cot in her apartment. It was well past the middle of the night but sleep eluded her. She had turned the holovision on but stared at it blankly, lost in her thoughts. Obi-Wan's words had been ringing in her mind since she had headed back home. At least he hadn't accused her of being in love with the bounty hunter, not verbally anyway. She had sensed it in some of his looks but to her relief he had never asked.

She wouldn't have been able to give him an answer even if he had. The knight couldn't disagree with her former master about her encounters with Boba being bizarre. She had witnessed the capture of several Jedi through the hunter's memories and each one had been brutally efficient. They had run; they had fought; they had failed. She recognized the same ruthless determination in all of his hunts that she had been on the receiving end of in her encounters with him, but that was where the similarities ended. Every time he came after her the force threw roadblocks in his way. She wouldn't have minded so much if those roadblocks would quit trapping her _with_ him. The fact that he had a knack for showing up right when she found herself in dangerous situations was both exasperating and unsettling. Whether Fett had realized it or not the timing of his appearances was becoming too frequent to be coincidence.

A soft ping caused her to look over to her datapad. She had set it on a search to find the bounty hunter's E-mail when she had first gotten home. She felt obliged to tell him about the life bond and its unfortunate side effects but her fingers stalled over the key pad. How did you tell someone who hated you that their life was now dependent on your survival and vice versa? After what felt like an eternity she began typing up a message, deciding to just throw the facts out there and deal with the consequences. She ended the message with an apology and hit send. She had the system set up on a scrambler so that he could respond but wouldn't be able to trace her location, even though she was pretty sure he already knew where she lived.

Boba was still awake and she tried not to think about _how_ she knew that as she waited to see if he would respond. She felt a surge of anger after a few minutes, meaning he had just read her message. The ping of a response came not long after.

[Damn you, Jedi. I will personally watch your execution at Vader's hands.]

A sigh left her as she deleted the message and fell back on the bed. That had been about the gist of the reaction she had been expecting.

_Your trust in the Force has brought you this far. Don't give up on it now._

It felt like a cruel joke that _this_ would be the path the Force guided her down, but as Obi-Wan had said, what was done was done. There was no way but forward. She stared at a large crack running through her ceiling as she contemplated all that those words truly meant now. She caught herself focusing on the fury still emanating from Fett's side of the bond and let out another sigh. How long would it take to get used to _this_?


	18. Chapter 18

I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Eighteen

As it turned out the answer to her question was a few months, though she wouldn't call their current solution to the life bond "getting used to it". As soon as he had calmed down Fett had slammed mental barricades in place. She had built her own, but because their minds were now connected she noticed that emotions still bled through. The barricades at least made ignoring the connection easier.

She hadn't seen the bounty hunter since he had stormed out of the clinic but she had noticed that she could sense when he was near. Nikita had always made sure to be ready to flee at a moment's notice at those times. His promise to witness her execution at Vader's hands was still fresh in her mind and she figured the only reason she was still alive was because he was still angry enough that he might shoot her on sight if he came after her now, costing him her bounty.

That knowledge hadn't kept the knight from catching herself idly thinking about the hunter. She would scold herself but it did nothing to keep him off her mind. At first she blamed the bond, but after some random, hopefully inconspicuous E-mails to Obi-Wan she had learned that while the life bond connected them it didn't have any influence over their feelings. That brought up a whole new set of questions she wasn't sure she was able, or ready, to answer.

Nikita had a bit of a small reprieve from that today. Chalmun's was bustling and it was everything she and Wuher could do to keep up. On top of that she was trying to pay attention to the holonews announcement that Emperor Palpatine had disbanded the Galactic Senate. She had only been able to catch bits and pieces of the announcement between serving customers, but from what she understood it was to root out Rebellion supporters. Whatever the reason the reporter made sure to point out that the last remnants of the Republic were now gone.

The knight was so distracted that she didn't notice the familiar feeling in the back of her mind until it grew so strong her mental barriers couldn't block it out. She froze in surprise, casting a cautious glance around.

Boba was here.

Not in the cantina, thankfully, but he was so close by he may as well have been. The hunter's presence was so strong it felt as though he was standing right behind her. She carefully focused on the bond, not wanting to draw his attention but wanting to find out what he was up to. She couldn't leave the cantina when it was so busy and the last thing she needed was for Boba to come charging in in an attempt to catch her. To her relief he was focused on something else. She couldn't tell much more. She sensed he was with others and they were looking for someone based on how distracted he was. Without warning she felt his attention shift and suddenly all his focus was tuned inward.

On her.

Nikita pulled back as if she'd been burned, scrambling to reinforce her mental barriers and bracing for some kind of backlash from the hunter. To her surprise none came. Boba turned his attention back to his task, his brief focus on her the mental equivalent of a glance of acknowledgment to let her know he was aware of her prying actions. The complete lack of animosity from the same man who had promised her a death sentence only a few months ago caught her off guard and it wasn't until Wuher began griping at someone that she snapped back to the reality around her.

The Jedi looked up to see a young blonde haired man standing just inside the entryway with two _very_ familiar droids behind him. Wuher was telling him to take the droids outside but Nikita cast a glance around, finding the brown robed figure she was looking for to her left. A patron on the opposite side of the bar called out to her before she had a chance to approach the Jedi master. She had no sooner finished filling their drink order than she heard a commotion, followed by the sound of a lightsaber igniting. She spun around in time to see two men hurrying away from the bar, one now nursing a newly amputated arm, and Obi-Wan standing there with his lightsaber drawn. The entire cantina had gone dead silent at the sight of the Jedi but returned to its nonchalant chatter soon afterward. She made her way over, wanting to speak to her former master before he left.

"I see you're still relieving people of their appendages," she said casually, causing the older man to look up at her.

"Only when necessary," Obi-Wan replied in a serious tone. He turned to a Wookiee beside him and asked him to wait for a few minutes before turning back to her.

"How are you faring," the guardian asked, leaning across the bar so as not to be overheard. "Those messages you sent a while back were a bit strange."

Well so much for being inconspicuous.

"I'm managing," she said, hoping her old master would accept that as an answer. He didn't.

"Those were not the questions of someone who is 'managing', Nikita," Obi-Wan responded with a raised brow. "Has he given you any problems? He has just as much access to your mind as you do to his."

"No," Nikita answered, feeling heat rise to her cheeks at the line of questioning. "He put up mental blocks as soon as he calmed down. We haven't interacted until…" she trailed off, remembering what had happened only minutes ago, and felt her cheeks heat up even more. Why was this conversation making her feel so awkward? She had never felt this way about anything before.

"Until," the guardian prodded, his brow rising even higher as he observed her burning cheeks.

"Until a few minutes ago," she said as she glanced down at the counter, bracing herself for Obi-Wan's rebuke.

The guardian let out a sigh before he responded, "I still don't approve but it's a bit late for that now." He lowered his voice so much that Nikita had to lean in to hear what he said next. "Nikita… are you in love with him?"

She froze, staring at him with wide eyes. Was he joking? She studied the serious, unwavering gaze he was giving her. No, not joking.

"I… I don't—" Her stuttering scramble for an answer was cut off when the Jedi master held up a hand.

"You didn't even let me answer," she exclaimed.

"I didn't need to," he replied, his gaze never wavering. "Your eyes told me all I needed to know."

"And that was?"

"Something you'll need to realize and accept for yourself. I've taught you everything I can, Nikita. You don't need my guidance anymore. Remember what I told you: The Force has brought you this far. Don't give up on it, no matter what happens."

Before she could question the cryptic response Obi-Wan clapped a hand on the blonde haired man's shoulder. She hadn't even realized the younger man had been beside Obi-Wan the entire time and felt her cheeks heat up once more when she realized he had probably heard most of their conversation.

"This is Luke Skywalker," Obi-Wan said as he looked back at her. "Luke, this is Nikita Solaris. She is an old friend of mine."

"Nice to meet you," Luke said as he held out a hand to her. "Are you okay? You look a bit flushed."

"Fine," she mumbled as she shook his hand. "It's nice to meet you as well, Luke."

"Well now, we best be on our way," Obi-Wan said. "Captain Solo won't be here forever." He steered Luke away from the bar and gave a nod to the Wookiee behind him before turning back to Nikita. "Take care, Nikita. May the Force be with you."

"And with you, master," she responded as she watched him walk over to one of the booths secluded in an alcove. She went back to work and when she looked up later to see Wuher talking to several stormtroopers she noticed that both Obi-Wan and Luke were gone. Her attention was soon distracted again when shots rang out from the same alcove that they had been in. She looked away from her current customer in time to see Captain Solo walk up and tip Wuher, apologizing for the "mess" before walking out.

The older bartender caught her questioning gaze and rolled his eyes, mouthing what looked like "damn smugglers". Nikita couldn't help but let out a chuckle at his reaction as she walked over to fill several drink orders at the beer taps. Boba's presence was still distracting in the back of her mind but he was focused on his task more so than he had been before so she assumed he had found whoever he had been looking for. She pulled back, not wanting to draw the hunter's attention again. There had already been two violent outbursts in the cantina in the span of an hour. She didn't need to risk antagonizing Boba to come burn the place down. Chalmun would kill her, _if_ he got to her before Boba did that was.

The rest of the afternoon passed without any more shootings or maimings, something both she and Wuher were thankful for. Boba had left the city soon after his group's confrontation with whomever they had been looking for, making it easier for her to tune out his end of the link and push some of her more nagging thoughts and questions to the back of her mind. Unfortunately the cantina crowd had thinned out as well in the lull between the lunch and dinner rush, leaving her with fewer customers to occupy her time and more opportunity for those thoughts and questions to come rushing right back.

She was in one of the back rooms fetching more ice to refill the ice bin and trying to keep her mind away from her earlier conversation with Obi-Wan when the force suddenly constricted around her. The sensation was so violent and unexpected that it took her breath away like a punch to the gut. Nikita staggered forward, leaning against the ice machine and attempting to regain her breath. The sensation passed just as quick as it had come but a gaping scar of silence was left in its wake. Millions of voices had cried out in fear and pain for only a few seconds before being cut off. It was almost like the sensation she'd felt when she had woken up on Fett's ship after Order 66 had been issued, except this was on a much grander scale and was more… thorough.

She let her forehead fall against the ice machine, focusing on the coolness of the metal while her senses adjusted to this newest wound in the force. She couldn't tell what had happened but she had a feeling the Empire was behind it. The door to the room opening broke her concentration and the knight looked up to see Wuher leaning into the room.

"The dinner crowd is starting to come in," he said before pausing and giving her a strange look. "You okay?"

"Fine," she replied, realizing she must have looked strained. "Just a long day."

A grunt of agreement was all she received before the older man headed back to the front. She pushed away from the ice machine and finished filling her container before she headed back out to the bar, hoping that the rest of the evening would pass by quietly.

The dinner rush was just as busy as the lunch rush had been but to Nikita's relief it was much less violent. She only had to throw out two patrons for getting into a drunken brawl and the rest of her shift passed without incident. The suns had already set by the time she left the cantina and started her routine walk across the city to her shabby apartment. The city's nightlife was already in full swing and the Jedi kept her head down and her senses open for anyone showing too much interest in her. She had been in the city more than long enough to know which areas and streets to avoid at night.

She had just keyed in her security code to her apartment and stepped through the doorway when the force delivered another gut-wrenching blow. The Jedi fell back against the door with a gasp, clutching uselessly at the sudden tightness in her chest. Her eyes widened in despair as she felt a bond that had been strong-forged through her for years flicker and fizzle out, leaving only a hollow feeling in its place.

No. No, no, no, no, no, she thought in a frantic manner as she willed herself not to believe what she was feeling. She knew in her heart it was true though; she could sense it. The knight slid down the door, staring at the ceiling as hot tears streamed down her face. A low whine built up in her throat and escaped as a full blown sob. She pulled her knees up to her chest and buried her face into her arms as more sobs escaped her. Any chance of controlling her tears gone as the force echoed forlornly around her.

Obi-Wan was dead.


	19. Chapter 19

I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Nineteen

Boba plopped down in the pilot seat of Slave I, having stripped down to just a sleeveless undershirt and his white pants. He had spent almost the entire morning accompanying Jabba while the Hutt had searched for that moronic smuggler, Solo. Then he had to spend a "polite" amount of time in Jabba's palace as his guest so as not to offend the Hutt, which meant watching a lot of ass kissing and dodging several slave girls the slug sent to seduce him. By the end of the day he had been unable to keep from making up an excuse to head back to his ship, wanting to be somewhere he could strip off his armor without having to worry about a vibroblade in the back.

Even with his suits temperature regulator the heat of the desert planet had still gotten to him. He was sweaty, he smelled bad, and he was pretty sure sand had gotten into places he didn't even know were possible. He needed a shower but that could wait. For the time being he closed his eyes and let the planet's gravity push him back in the seat as his ship sat in its docking bay. The hunter wasn't sure how long he sat there but a sudden persistent beeping caused him to give an aggravated groan as he looked up to see his dash console with a new alert on it. He sat forward, realizing he had dozed off for a few minutes, and silenced the alarm. Boba skimmed over the information in the alert, intending to store it to look at tomorrow, but paused when he saw what it was.

Nikita Solaris' file, or rather the file that covered the account of her mission on Korriban. The Jedi had begrudgingly told him the bare bones of the story when they were stuck in the Tusken Raider camp, but he knew there had to be more to it and he made it common practice to know as much about his targets as possible.

The files had been under surprisingly heavy encryption. He had started a search for them when he and the Jedi had escaped the Sand People over a year ago. His computers search program quickly located them in the remaining Jedi Temple archives on Coruscant, but the entire database was under strict Imperial encryption. Not one to be deterred by fancy firewalls, Boba had set up a program to discreetly download and decrypt the files without the Imperials being able to trace the data back to him. The program had been running nonstop in the background for months and had just now managed to successfully break the encryption.

Whatever was in those files had to be valuable with coding like that.

His curiosity piqued, Boba opened the files one by one scanning through them. Four were dossiers on the Jedi sent on the mission and he cast a brief sweeping glance over each one, noting information of interest.

[Name: Ginah Toth  
Age: 45 standard years  
Race: Miraluka  
Sex: Female  
Rank: Master  
Status: Deceased]

[Name: Khacarr Na  
Age: 38 standard years  
Race: Cathar  
Sex: Male  
Rank: Knight  
Status: Deceased]

[Name: Lon Murta  
Age: 34 standard years  
Race: Human  
Sex: Male  
Rank: Knight  
Status: Alive — Updated: Deceased]

Boba frowned. So someone else had survived the mission. Not that it did them much good as he noted that their updated death record coincided with the Emperor's orders to wipe out the Jedi. He opened the last dossier and skimmed over its contents.

[Name: Nikita Solaris  
Age: 17 standard years — Updated: 32 standard years (current)  
Race: Human  
Sex: Female  
Rank: Knight  
Status: Alive]

Solaris' profile had been recently updated, leading him to believe that the Imperials probably had her file linked to their network to keep it up to date. He caught himself frowning once more as he read over her information again, pausing over her age at the time of the mission. Seventeen. Boba didn't know much about how the Jedi ran things, nor did he care to, but it was obvious Solaris was the most inexperienced out of the entire group. Her companions were over ten years her seniors. If the mission was as bad as she'd made it sound why had she been chosen for it instead of someone with more experience? He thought back to his encounter with her on Coruscant. That couldn't have been that long before this mission and he knew enough to recognize that she hadn't been knighted then. That's why she'd been with Kenobi. Was this her first mission after she was knighted?

He leaned back in his chair with an irritated sigh and rubbed a hand over his face. Why was he putting so much thought into this? He had come to his ship so he _wouldn't_ have to think. The hunter glanced at the two remaining files, briefly contemplating closing out of them till tomorrow but decided against it. If he tried putting it off his curiosity would nag him the rest of the night. He leaned forward again and read the description of the two remaining files. One was a typed report of what had happened according to the surviving members of the group sent to Korriban. The other was video of the actual questioning of the survivors. Boba opened the video footage, not feeling like reading through an entire incident report at the moment. Getting a headache wasn't on his to-do list for the night.

The video file opened to reveal that the footage was from a security camera located in an interrogation room. Nikita Solaris sat alone at a small table. Boba could see a bacta patch on her cheek facing the camera and several bandages on her arms. Her hands were resting on the table in front of her and he noticed that her wrists were bound with stasis cuffs. She sat still, her head slightly bowed as she stared at the table, making it hard to see her face.

The door to the room opened and both Mace Windu and Kenobi entered. Boba watched as the two men seated themselves across from Solaris but was distracted by a sudden cramp in his hand. He glanced down and realized he'd been clenching the arms of his seat in a death grip at the sight of Windu. The hunter released the armrests and began trying to massage the cramp out of his hand as he turned his attention back to the video.

"Jedi Knight Solaris," Windu greeted formally. "I hope you understand our precautions given the circumstances." He made a sweeping motion to indicate her cuffs and the room.

Boba saw one of Nikita's shoulders rise in a small shrug but she didn't look up as she responded, "I understand."

The two older Jedi shared a look before turning their attention back to her and even Boba noticed the complete lack of sarcastic wit that usually laced through her tone. She sounded broken and haunted.

And for some reason that bothered him.

"Nikita," Obi-Wan spoke up. "We would like to hear your account of what happened."

The younger Jedi glanced up at him. Boba had noticed the gold flecks of color in her eyes when they had been forced to work together to escape the Tusken Raiders, then again when he'd tried to capture her out from under Sing and Bane. He hadn't paid it much more attention, but he had noted that the color seemed to react to her emotions. The hunter had seen his fair share of Sith but even he was slightly unnerved at Solaris' appearance. Her irises were completely gold, giving her an eerie look. She studied Obi-Wan for some time in silence before she looked back down at the table, once again hiding her eyes.

"I thought you did a memory read on me," she said in that same quiet voice.

"Yes, Master Vos was able to give us a good idea of what happened but we would still like to hear an accurate account of events from yourself," Kenobi replied, raising a brow. At first Boba couldn't figure out why that expression seemed so familiar, but then he realized it was the same look he had been on the receiving end of from Solaris in almost every one of their encounters. She had learned a lot more than just training from Kenobi.

Nikita let out a small breath before she spoke again, "As you already know I was picked to accompany Master Toth, Knight Khacarr, and Knight Murta to Korriban to investigate rumors of Sith artifacts being illegally smuggled off world," she paused and glanced up at the two Jedi across from her before continuing. "Master Toth was in charge of the mission. We landed about a mile outside of The Valley of the Dark Lords and made our way in on foot so as not to alert anyone to our presence. In order to cover more ground Master Toth ordered us to split up, but we were only to investigate the outside area of the tombs. If we found any evidence of the smugglers we were to comm in and wait for the others to regroup at our position. I was sent to investigate the Eastern end of the ruins while Toth went North, Murta went West, and Khacarr stayed in the Southern quadrant."

"And that was the last time you saw them when they were still behaving normally," Windu asked as he leaned forward onto his elbows.

Solaris nodded. "I don't remember how much time passed, an hour maybe. I came across a tomb that looked to have been recently excavated and showed signs of heavy foot traffic so I contacted the others and gave them my location. The tomb entrance had been blasted open with explosives and I hid behind some of the rubble while I waited. I could hear voices coming from inside the tomb and I tried to lean around my cover to see if I could spot who it was," she cut off, a frown crossing her face.

"What happened, Nikita," Obi-Wan asked when she didn't continue. "Did you see the smugglers?"

"I didn't have a chance to," the young Jedi said with a shake of her head. "I had leaned out of cover when something hit me in the back and threw me into the entrance to the tomb. I remember hearing shouting from farther in the tomb so I guessed the smugglers caught sight of us and ran. The only people I saw when I got to my feet were Khacarr and Murta. They approached me but they didn't seem… right."

"How so," Windu asked with a frown.

"Their expressions were… blank, empty almost, and when they spoke it was flat like something was telling them what to say."

"What did they say?"

"That the 'Master' wished to see me. I could sense something sinister coming from them so I backed away and asked where Master Toth was. That was when they drew their weapons. I drew mine in return and Khacarr lunged at me. I ducked away from his attack. I didn't want to fight them. I managed to avoid his swing but he lashed out with his claws and caught me across the arm. I stayed on the defensive but Khacarr became more violent in his attacks. I tried to get through to him, to tell him to stop, but it was like he couldn't even hear me. He kept slashing at me with his claws until he had me backed into a corner and then he disarmed me and threw me into the nearest wall." She paused and Boba heard the shaky inhale that followed.

"I hit the wall and fell to the floor. Khacarr advanced on me and I heard him growl that the Master was displeased by my resistance and I was to be punished. I reached for my lightsaber and grabbed it just as he reached me. I... I swung at the same time he did but I—" she cut off when her voice cracked and she said the next part so quietly that Boba had to lean forward to hear her. "I killed him."

Silence reigned in the interrogation room for several minutes and Boba watched Kenobi shoot a quick look at Windu who nodded in return.

"What happened after Khacarr was dead," Obi-Wan asked.

"I remember staring at his body. I knew I was bleeding but I couldn't feel anything. I guess that was the adrenaline. I had been so focused on defending myself from Khacarr's attacks that I had forgotten about Murta. He jumped on me and ripped my lightsaber from my hand before he started to choke me. I tried to throw him off but he had my arms pinned under his legs and he was too heavy. I must've passed out soon afterward. I don't remember anything until I woke up in the other tomb."

"What exactly did you see when you woke up," Windu questioned and Boba found himself bristling at the Jedi's skeptical sounding tone.

"When I woke up I was chained to a wall. Murta was there, as was Master Toth, but she was different too. I had spoken to her on the trip there and she was calm and kind. When I saw her there in the tomb she was demanding, cold, and cruel. She made Murta kneel in front of her and drew her lightsaber. I watched as she pressed it to his cheek, telling him that was his punishment for almost killing her prize. Murta started screaming and I remember hearing him call her Master Tantalus in his pleas for mercy. I must have gagged at the smell because she turned to me and left Murta on the floor."

"Nikita, are you certain Murta referred to her by the name Tantalus," Obi-Wan asked as he and Windu shared yet another look. That was becoming an irritating trend between them, Boba noticed.

Solaris glanced up at the two older Jedi and her eyes gleamed with something the bounty hunter couldn't put a name to.

"I'm positive," she ground out with steel in her voice. "She made it a point to formally introduce herself. She was a Sith sorceress during the time of Exar Kun. Her… _specialty_ , as she soon demonstrated, was control and manipulation of the mind."

"Please don't misunderstand, Nikita," Obi-Wan said, looking surprised at the sudden change of tone in the young Jedi. "Darth Tantalus is an ancient name. Very few have even heard of the sorceress. Did she happen to say how she was able to possess Master Toth?"

Boba watched Solaris shake her head, all the sudden bite draining out of her as she looked back down at her bound hands.

"I demanded to know what she had done to Master Toth and the others but she just laughed. She told me that Master Toth's body was an adequate vessel for her current plans and that Murta and Khacarr were only a means to an end. Once she had possessed Master Toth she overwhelmed and took control of the other's minds and ordered them to come after me. I was her _prize_ , as she put it. She told me she hadn't sensed someone as strong in the force as I was in hundreds of years and she was going to make me her apprentice whether or not I wanted to be…" Nikita paused and gripped her hands tightly together in anxiety. "She… trapped my mind in some sort of loop. I just kept reliving every bad memory, everything I regretted, everything I wished I could redo, everything I might have longed for at some point that I could never have. All the while she was there, whispering in my mind with false promises of what she could give me if I joined her and became her apprentice. I tried to resist her, but after a while you can't remember anything else. That… _hell_ becomes your reality. It starts to physically hurt. I didn't want to fall but eventually I was too weak to resist her."

The shame in the young Jedi's voice was evident but it didn't deter the two masters from prodding her for further information.

"So you _did_ fall to the dark side," Windu stated flatly, raising a brow. Boba watched as Solaris sank a bit in her seat at the damning statement, her face showing her guilt. To his credit Kenobi shot a quick, disapproving glance at Windu before he turned back to Nikita and his features softened.

"Please continue, Nikita."

"I-I remember feeling ashamed when Tantalus finally stopped torturing me. She tried using that against me, telling me it was a residual feeling from my weak Jedi training. She wanted to test her control over me. She ordered Murta to attack me in the hope I would kill him. He attacked without hesitation. I didn't want to fight but I knew that her control over his mind was too strong for me to reason with him. There were support pillars nearby and I retreated by them. When Murta got close enough I threw him into the pillar and disarmed him before kicking him farther back. I collapsed the pillar and caused the roof of the tomb to cave in around him so he would be trapped. I thought that if I could somehow break Tantalus' hold over him, if I could manage to save at least one of my companions, even if it cost my life…"

"Then you would feel like you had redeemed yourself," Obi-Wan finished when she didn't continue.

Nikita gave a slight nod. "I know it doesn't change what I did, but I didn't want to lose anyone else. Tantalus was furious that I hadn't killed Murta. I tried to call out to Master Toth. I thought that she might be strong enough to overcome the sorceress' control but I never got through to her. Tantalus had her claws sunk too deeply into her mind. She attacked me in a fury. I didn't stand much of a chance against the Sith lord on my own but all I cared about at the time was trying to save my companions. I was able to use her fury against her but she eventually backed me into a corner. I broke through her attack and the next thing I knew her arm was laying on the floor. She screeched in fury and lunged at me again but I spun out from under her attack and… took off her other arm. I thought that Tantalus might give up Master Toth's body if she couldn't use it to her needs and then Master Toth would at least be alive but it didn't work. Tantalus only became angrier. I had been half expecting her to release her hold on Master Toth; instead I found her lightsaber flying toward my face. I deflected it back at her without thinking and… I watched it slice through her… she didn't even try to move…" Solaris stopped talking, but not before Boba heard the threat of tears in her voice.

Windu either didn't notice or didn't care because he continued on with his questioning. "Yes, when we discovered Master Toth's body in the tomb, however, her torso was at least five feet from her lower half and there were drag marks across the floor," he paused and gave Solaris an inquisitive look. "And she'd been decapitated."

Solaris glanced up from her hands, her unnerving gold eyes giving away just how unsettled she was at whatever she was remembering.

"I knew that Tantalus was using Master Toth's body as a vessel. What I underestimated was the Sith's desperation to retain her physical body. Being cut in half may have killed Toth but Tantalus was unfazed. I watched as Toth's torso drug itself across the floor toward me, hissing in rage and spitting curses at me. It was then I realized Tantalus had put all of her strength into taking possession of Master Toth. She wasn't going to give her body up. I couldn't stand seeing her body be defiled and used as a puppet any longer. I decapitated her. It was the only way to put an end to Tantalus' use of her body." Nikita paused but didn't break eye contact with Windu. When she continued her voice was much quieter. "I took no pleasure in what I did."

Neither Jedi master said a word for several minutes and Solaris never took her eyes from Windu's. The older man finally stood, casting a quick look at Kenobi before addressing her. "Thank you for your statement, Knight Solaris. I will continue my investigation of this matter until all details are resolved."

"You don't believe me," Nikita stated in a flat tone.

Windu stopped in the doorway and shot her a stern look. "My job isn't to believe you. My job is to find out the truth." With that he was out the door.

"Don't worry, Nikita. We'll get this sorted out," Obi-Wan said as he too got up and left the room.

The video stopped shortly afterward and Boba fast forwarded to the next interrogation clip. Windu and Kenobi were there once again but this time they were questioning a sandy haired man with a nasty burn mark across his cheek. Rather, they were _attempting_ to question him. Boba only watched a few minutes of the video before he closed it out. The man had gone completely insane and the bounty hunter wondered how the Jedi had managed to get anything of use out of his babbling.

Boba let out a sigh and propped his elbow on the arm of the pilot seat, resting his chin on his hand. He idly tapped his cheek as he opened the incident report he had been trying to steer clear of, scrolling to the bottom and skimming over the information until he found what he was looking for.

[Jedi Knight Solaris was proven innocent relating to the deaths of her comrades in the Korriban incident. She was held in solitary confinement until sufficient evidence was gathered to determine she wasn't a threat to the Order. She was moved to the medical recovery ward for psychological therapy for three months until she was deemed fit to return to field duty.  
Jedi Knight Murta sustained irreversible psychological damage and was deemed ill fit to return to duty. He was moved to reside in an assisted living facility close to the Jedi Temple.]

So there had been _a lot_ more to Solaris' story than she had told him. Another sigh left the hunter as he stared at his console, not really seeing it. In the back of his mind he knew he had uncovered a gold mine of information to use against Solaris but a larger part of him felt… angry. He didn't know why. Jedi killing each other off was usually a plus in his mind but he couldn't shake the feeling of irritation that built in his chest upon seeing how she was treated.

He understood the importance of security measures during an interrogation, but even _he_ felt that Solaris' treatment by her fellow Jedi was a bit… excessive. She was held in confinement until _sufficient evidence_ was gathered to determine she wasn't a _threat_? She had gone through an entire interrogation in stasis cuffs without a single complaint. That was a hell of a lot more compliant and nonthreatening than he would've been in that situation, especially after an incident as… _unsettling_ as that.

Boba groaned and let his head fall back against the headrest when he realized he was putting too much thought into the situation. Again. This should've been a simple bounty like the others, but he had figured out a long time ago that nothing about Nikita Solaris was simple. That damn Jedi had a knack for finding trouble and somehow dragging him into it.

She was infuriating, but part of him couldn't help but be intrigued by her. His targets usually cowered at the very mention of his name. He could silence a room just by walking into it and he took pride in his infamous reputation, but Solaris didn't even seem fazed by his presence. She treated him like she would anyone else, like he was human, and he would be lying if he said it hadn't caught him off guard more than once.

The woman was an enigma; one he had noticed was occupying his thoughts more and more lately. He blamed that damned life bond, or whatever the Jedi had called it in her message. The name didn't matter, what did was the fact that he was now stuck sharing his mind with her. If what she had told him was to be believed he would be signing his own death warrant by turning her over to the Empire. As a man invested in personal preservation he wasn't sure he was ready to drive the last nail in his own coffin just yet but he refused to be outsmarted by a target, especially that exasperating woman. After all the trouble she had caused him he wasn't about to let her go so easily.

He still couldn't understand why someone who had suffered severe mental torture would be so willing to go into someone else's mind, even in an attempt to save them. Why had she saved him in the first place? She would've been smarter to leave him to die considering their opposing positions. The only reason he had saved her when Aurra knocked her over the cliff edge was because he would've lost her bounty. That had been the reason why it felt like his heart had leapt to his throat when he watched her disappear over the edge. If he hadn't been so distracted by the swift wave of relief that hit him when he looked up in time to see her clear the cliff edge on her jump back up he would've been able to grab the boy and still have time to avoid the grenade explosion.

He barely remembered giving Solaris permission to enter his mind after the explosion, or anything else for that matter. The consequences of too much blood loss had already kicked in by the time she asked, practically begged, again and the weaker, irrational part of him was the first to answer her. His memory of her actually inside his mind was clearer. That had been… strange, and he had responded with instinctual hostility at her presence. When he had awoken in the clinic and realized the full extent of what she had done, of what he had _allowed_ her to do, he was furious. He had almost shot her then and there. To make matters worse her presence was almost impossible to ignore. His mental blocks helped, but on days when he had to go into Mos Eisley, like today, their proximity to each other ripped through his barriers like they were nothing. The hunter had to endure feeling like Solaris had been standing at his shoulder the entire morning and part of the afternoon. Needless to say it was _very_ distracting, made more so when he noticed her slight prodding to try and see what he was up to. Boba had just enough time to deter her from her prying before he realized Jabba was asking him something. Not hearing the first part of what the Hutt had asked he had felt like he was walking on glass as he tried to come up with an answer that wouldn't insult the slug or inadvertently agree to a trap offer. It had actually been a relief when Solo had shown up.

The bounty hunter gave a slight start and frowned when he realized he had been idly thinking of the knight _and_ focusing on the bond. He let out a frustrated grunt and rubbed his temples, already feeling the headache he had been trying to avoid all day taking hold. A sudden memory of his father surfaced, unbidden, to the forefront of his mind. It had been one of the last trips his dad made without him before Kenobi showed up and they were forced to leave Kamino. He remembered his father coming back alone and sitting down without a word, pulling his helmet off and staring into the visor for a long time. When he had asked his dad where Zam was Jango let out a deep sigh and looked up at him.

"Son, there are two things in this life that will get you into more trouble than you can handle. The first is curiosity. The second is a woman. Usually the first has something to do with the second so you're better off avoiding both."

At the time Boba hadn't understood what his dad meant, but as he got older the words had made more sense. Then he had met Sintas and had received a brutal first hand lesson on the _exact_ meaning of those words. But that was an old wound and this… was a different situation. Solaris was a mark. That was all.

Deciding to give up hope for a quiet night and settle for a shower instead, the hunter moved to climb out of his chair. He froze, however, when the presence, _her_ presence, flared up unexpectedly in the back of his mind. That struck him as odd. Yes, the Jedi had her moments of nosiness such as earlier today, but he had noticed that she tended to keep to herself. He had also noted that she kept up just as many, if not more mental blocks as he did, but now he didn't even need to focus on the feeling of her in the back of his mind to sense those blocks crumbling like sand. Something was wrong.

Boba's curiosity had a brief struggle with his caution before curiosity won out and he turned his attention to the bond. He usually did his best to ignore the fact that it was there and to stay away from it. He also knew it was reckless to mess with something you didn't have a decent understanding of, but he wanted to know what could have debilitated the knight so quickly. He had no sooner focused on the link when a sudden wave of grief washed over him. The hunter frowned and let his focus flow a bit farther across the bond. He was all-out prying now, but Solaris was either too upset to notice or too upset to care. She was alone and crying, and then he managed to slip deep enough over the bond to tell what had caused her so much grief.

Kenobi had died.

Boba drew back, not realizing just how deep he had delved into her side of the bond. Solaris suddenly stiffened in surprise and it was then he realized he had unwittingly sent a pulse of understanding across the link. The hunter let out a curse at his own curiosity and attempted to pull back, to leave her alone and continue ignoring her presence as he should have done in the first place, but she was faster. She reached out and latched on to his consciousness, effectively trapping him in place. It was Boba's turn to stiffen in surprise, but what he had first perceived as an attack soon became clear for what it was: an unconscious response to comfort in the face of loss. Almost like someone grabbing his hand to make him stay longer, something he had _never_ been on the receiving end of before. It became clear that the Jedi wasn't even fully aware of what she was doing. Boba resisted the urge to break away from her grasp, telling himself it was because of the backlash of familiar emotions flowing from her side of the bond. Kenobi had been like a father to her, a father she had just lost and that…

That was a pain he was all too familiar with.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: So this is by far the longest chapter I've written but it was a necessary evil to fill in some back story I've been hinting at for a few chapters now. Also I felt it was about time we had a chapter in our favorite bounty hunter's POV and got an idea of what was floating around in his head. As nice as it is to try and update every week I've found my life is just too chaotic for that so I've decided to upload all the chapters I've had written so far and give myself more time to work on writing up the next few. I hope you all enjoy it so far and I will post again as soon as I get some more chapters for this story written. Thank you!


	20. Chapter 20

I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Twenty

Nikita sat at the small kitchen table in Obi-Wan's hut. It had been a week since she had sensed her master's passing through the force, a week of too little sleep, too much caffeine, and trouble concentrating. At last she hadn't been able to stand it and she had taken the day off from work to go to her mentor's old home. The knight had even gone so far as to make tea but couldn't bring herself to drink it. Instead she sat with her eyes closed, letting the heat from the mug seep through her fingers as she focused on the empty silence in the hut around her. She had come here in the hopes that she might still be able to sense Obi-Wan's presence but she had only been greeted by a sense of emptiness. Her mentor had moved on.

That didn't mean that the memories she had of him were gone with him though, and she chose to focus on those instead. A small, sad smile crossed her lips as she remembered their last conversation. It melted into a frown, however, when she remembered the last _question_ he'd asked her. A question he claimed she already knew the answer to, one involving a certain bounty hunter whom she couldn't seem to banish from her thoughts.

She opened her eyes and stared at the table, feeling her cheeks heat up as she thought about what had happened the night she'd sensed Obi-Wan's death. She had been so upset she hadn't realized she had attracted Boba's attention, and she had been surprised and slightly alarmed that he had managed to delve so deeply across the bond without her noticing. The hunter wasn't aware of how deep he had delved either, if the speed with which he tried to pull back was any indicator. She should have ignored it, should have thrown up barriers to cut off his access to her mind, but she was caught off guard by the sudden feeling of understanding that swept through her. She could tell he hadn't meant to do that, but when she felt his presence withdrawing part of her had panicked. She had reached out and latched onto him before she even realized what she was doing. She just hadn't wanted to be alone. It wasn't until later that she was brought back to her senses by the feeling of the bounty hunter slowly and carefully disentangling his consciousness from hers. She had recoiled in surprise which soon turned to embarrassment when she realized what she had done in her distraught state of mind. It hadn't helped any when she checked her chrono soon afterward and saw that almost an hour had passed.

Embarrassment became an understatement at that point.

Fett was out to capture her. It was bad enough she had accidentally forged a life bond with him. She didn't need to hand him full access to her mind in her weak moments. He could have easily attacked her that night, rendering her helpless and at his mercy both mentally and physically. It would've been easy for him to break into her apartment and capture her after that. The knowledge that he _hadn't_ done that did nothing to help the turmoil of questions she couldn't seem to bring herself to answer.

The sudden low thrum of a ships engine pulled the knight from her thoughts and she frowned up at the ceiling. No one knew she was here and the hut was well out of the way of ship routes. She could tell the ship was about to land nearby though from how quickly its engine decelerated and she idly wondered why the deep, purring hum sounded so familiar.

Her answer came swiftly; almost violently when the force pulsed around her and the dark, solid presence in the back of her mind rose up like a tidal wave, instantly wiping out all the mental barriers she had worked so hard to reinforce. _He_ was here, but why?

Nikita knew it would be futile to hope he didn't notice her there. The bond had flared up with such a surge of energy at their close proximity that it was making it difficult to focus on anything else. Her only option was to run. She got up and made her way to the door in the kitchen, hoping to sneak out the back, but froze when she caught sight of the Slave I sitting only yards away and Boba already halfway to the hut. She spun around in a slight panic, searching for a place to hide, and her gaze fell upon the trapdoor in the center of the kitchen. She knew it led to the cellar but she had never been down there. Deciding to take her chances Nikita threw open the door and dropped down onto the staircase, hearing the main door to the hut open seconds after she had pulled the trapdoor closed.

To her surprise the overwhelming sensation of the bounty hunter's presence in her mind fell silent, startling her to the point where she almost slipped trying to make her way down the steps in the dark. She froze, biting her lip to stifle her startled inhale. She knew he was still in her mind, and when she reached out just the slightest fraction she felt her consciousness almost collide with his. She drew back, but not fast enough to avoid his attention. His focus shifted to her and she felt it as strongly as if he were staring her down. The sound of footfalls echoed overhead and she scrambled to make her way down the rest of the stone steps. When she reached the bottom she felt along the wall, hoping to find a storage closet or something to hide in underneath the staircase, but her hands only met with solid stone.

The Jedi breathed out a curse and was forced to press herself up against the wall when the trapdoor was suddenly yanked open. She glanced up, not daring to breathe, but couldn't see anything from her position. Fett's boots echoed as he stepped down onto the stairway and then the trapdoor swung shut, dousing the cellar in darkness once more. Nikita's eyes widened when she remembered Mandalorian helmets contained infrared sensors, meaning he would see her long before she saw him. She could hear his steps coming closer but the sound was bouncing off the walls, making it difficult to pinpoint just where he was. The knight closed her eyes, focusing on the force to sense him, but even that was challenging with the constant feeling of his mind brushing up against hers. Sensing he was in front of her, the knight drew her lightsaber, opening her eyes to find the tip of the beam hovering a few inches from his throat and the barrel of his rifle almost pressing into her cheek. She forced her gaze past the rifle to stare into his T-shaped visor, noticing how eerie it looked in the lilac glow of her weapon. He had gotten much closer than she would've liked.

"Boba," she greeted, realizing too late that she had referred to him by his first name, an annoying habit she had become aware of recently.

"Solaris," he replied in a wary tone. She found herself quirking a brow at hearing him refer to her by anything other than "Jedi," but was forced to rein her surprise in check when he continued. "Hand over the lightsaber."

"Think I'll keep it, thanks."

"I wasn't asking."

"Neither was I."

Nikita felt the hunter's spike of frustration sweep through her mind and she narrowed her eyes in defiance. He was _not_ getting her lightsaber. They stood in a silent standoff for what felt like an eternity, neither wanting to concede defeat to the other. Just when she was sure he was going to take his chances and attack her he let out a heavy, irritated sigh and stepped back, raising his rifle and motioning to the stairs.

"Move. _Slowly_."

She deactivated her lightsaber and took a cautious step toward him, noticing him tense, but he made no move to grab her and waited till she was working her way up the stairs before following. The walk back up was silent and tense and she chose to focus on not falling off the steps instead of the looming presence of the hunter behind her.

Her head found the trapdoor first with a loud crack and she crumpled with a hiss and several choice words. She was vaguely aware of Boba brushing past her and the door was pushed open, letting light flow into the space once more. Nikita chanced a glance up, still holding her smarting head, and her nose brushed against his knee armor. She felt her cheeks heat up when she realized how awkward their position currently was and she could have sworn she felt the slightest thread of amusement flow through the bond from his side. It was gone just as fast as he stepped up into the kitchen, once again putting space between them. Nikita followed and cast a quick glance at the back door as Fett swung the trapdoor closed.

"I wouldn't if I were you, unless you have a death wish," he said suddenly.

She jumped in surprise and looked to see his visor trained on her, but he didn't seem concerned about her bolting. She turned back to the door and saw, for the first time, a thin strand of wire running just across the length of the threshold.

"A tripwire," she asked, looking at him with a raised brow. "Are you worried I would try to escape, or are you expecting company?"

"None of your concern. Now go stand over there where I can keep an eye on you."

She frowned but walked over and leaned against the small table by the bed. Boba looked around the kitchen before walking to the nearest shelf and pulling all of its contents, which consisted of several boxes, down.

"What are you doing," Nikita demanded as he began pulling out various papers and books, skimming through them before dropping them into a haphazard pile on the nearest flat surface. He ignored her and she stepped away from the table only to find his rifle once again leveled at her.

"Stay where you are."

"Not until you tell me why you're here ransacking Obi-Wan's house! You have no right being here!"

"I'm on a job. I don't _need_ a right to be anywhere. Kenobi's dead. Getting mad at me won't bring him back."

The words stopped her in her tracks, instantly draining the anger out of her and causing her to slump back against the table. The harsh reality of the hunter's statement stung and cut through her like a hot knife, but she knew he was right. Obi-Wan was gone and nothing she did or said was going to bring him back. The things he'd left behind in this hut were just that: things. That still didn't stem the feeling of irritation that bubbled up in her chest when Boba went back to rummaging through her former master's belongings, but she thought she saw him set the next few books down with a little more care than he had minutes ago.

They carried on like that for some time in silence. She watched as he sifted through various places, all of which held papers or documents of some sort, wondering what he was searching for. The Jedi considered asking him but figured he wouldn't tell her, and trying to find out through the bond was out of the question. They were so close he would sense if she was trying to pry in an instant. The bond was still calm between them, a fact that caused an unsettling flutter to stir in her chest when she thought about how close they had to be to each other in order for it to stay that way.

The hunter's search eventually brought him to the table she was leaning against and he motioned for her to move. She stepped to the side and watched as he began going through the contents of the desk drawers. After a few minutes her gaze shifted to the nearby window. Fett seemed more preoccupied with whatever his current job was than on capturing her and she wondered what he was going to do once he found what he was looking for. She still had her lightsaber and she wasn't at a disadvantage this time. If he insisted on trying to capture her he would have a fight on his hands.

"I found the records about Korriban."

The statement caught her off guard and she looked over to find his visor trained on her. How long had he been staring at her, she wondered and felt her cheeks heat up just the slightest bit at the thought.

"How," she asked, attempting to school her expression into a frown and make it seem as though she was turning red out of anger rather than… other ridiculous reasons.

"The Jedi archives on Coruscant."

Her frown was legitimate now. "If those files survived they would be off limits to anyone who isn't a high rank Imperial. How did _you_ get access?"

"I have my methods," he replied as he turned his attention back to the desk.

Nikita watched him with a furrowed brow. If what he said was true, and she didn't doubt it was, then he knew _everything_. Why did he care though? Was he going to try and use the information against her? What good would that do when everyone else was dead now except for her?

"Why were you sent on that mission?"

"What?" She looked up into his visor once more, wondering if she had heard him correctly.

"Why were you sent on that mission," he repeated, sounding a bit irritated that he had to do so. "It was obvious you had far less experience than the other Jedi on your team."

"There was nobody else." She shrugged. "The Order was stretched too thin already from the war. The knight who was supposed to go got held up on another mission. They only had a handful of freshly knighted candidates to pick from and Master Toth chose me," she paused and looked out the window again. "Maybe if she hadn't they would all still be alive."

"You don't know that. You had no say over their actions, only your own."

Nikita glanced at him in surprise but he'd already gone back to rifling through papers as though nothing had happened. How was there no end to this man surprising her? He was a Jedi hating bounty hunter and yet she was pretty sure he had just defended her actions on Korriban in his own way. That also wasn't taking into account the fact that he had allowed her to keep her lightsaber and hadn't made any move to try and capture her yet. Then there was the whole incident from the other night where she had spent almost an hour in the mental equivalent of an embrace with him, something he hadn't shied away from. That thought alone was enough to bring heat flaring back to her cheeks and the unsettling flutter in her chest to intensify several notches. The situation between them had become much more than complicated over the past several years.

Boba looked back over at her and she realized she had been absently staring at him. Her cheeks were still burning and she decided to try and change the subject in the hope he wouldn't notice.

"Mind telling me what you're looking for?"

He didn't answer, instead turning his attention back to the papers in his hands. Nikita crossed her arms and shot him an irritated look, sensing his silence was the only answer she was going to receive. She jumped, however, when he suddenly muttered something in Mandalorian and threw the papers down on the desk with more force than necessary. He looked at her then and she could feel his frustration trickling across the bond.

"Luke Skywalker. Where is he," he growled.

"I don't know," she replied. So it was Luke he was after, which meant the boy had gained the Empire's attention but perhaps more dangerous, had gained his _father's_ attention.

Boba took a step toward her and she took a step back in return only to feel her back hit the wall. With nowhere for her to go Fett's next step closed the already short distance between them.

"Kenobi was your mentor. I know he confided in you."

"That doesn't mean he told me everything," she responded, leveling a glare at him. He was close enough that she could see her reflection in his visor. Her cheeks were no longer flaming red, much to her relief, but that was the least of her concerns at the moment.

She had thought that how close they were to each other had calmed the bond between them, but now that Boba was only inches away from her she found that the solid dark presence she had grown so used to in the back of her mind had intensified and was now feeding off of the bounty hunter's physical presence. His proximity was overwhelming her senses, drowning out everything else. He was all she could sense.

"Don't lie to me."

"You of all people should know I'm telling the truth," Nikita said in a strained voice. Her hands found the wall behind her and she sank further against it in an attempt to anchor herself. She needed to get away from him. She couldn't even think straight with his presence surrounding her like this. She heard him inhale to speak and noticed that it sounded unsteady. Was he being affected by their closeness the same way she was? Or worse, was he sensing what _she_ was feeling through the bond?

Whatever the hunter had been about to say was cut off by the sound of a landspeeder pulling up outside. Nikita looked out the window to see three men climbing out of the vehicle and a frown settled on her features. Even in her minds hazy state she recognized the trio in an instant but noted that the fourth member who usually accompanied the two humans and one Rodian was absent. That was a small consolation as she had learned the three approaching the hut were more than capable of causing their share of trouble without the help of their six-armed friend.

"Why are _they_ here," she asked more to herself than the bounty hunter standing in front of her.

"You know them."

"They come to the cantina a lot. They're thugs and lousy tippers," she replied with a quirked brow. "They also have no business being out here, a lot like you."

Boba's irritation at her sarcasm streaked through her mind but he didn't respond, instead reaching out and grabbing her upper arm. She had been watching the men approach the hut and wasn't prepared for the sudden physical contact of the hunter's hand on her arm, nor was she expecting the current that felt like a mixture of fire and electricity to shoot through her body like lightning at his touch.

The knight stumbled forward with a gasp, almost running into the now frozen bounty hunter. She sensed his surprise before he quickly blocked it off and began walking back to the kitchen. Nikita's senses were still reeling from the unexpected reaction his touch had on her body, leaving her too dazed to pull away or pay attention to where he was taking her. She saw that his gloves were on, but she could still feel the heat of his hand almost burning against her skin, a sensation she hadn't experienced in any of their previous encounters.

Boba pulled her over to the trapdoor and yanked it open once more, signaling for her to enter the cellar. She numbly complied, too lost in her turmoil of thoughts to protest. The bond had to be the cause of this. She wanted to believe that but her mind went back to her messages to Obi-Wan. He had said the bond didn't influence feelings, only allowed them to be shared between the two linked individuals. So then what the hell was wrong with her? She was normally way more in control of her reactions than this. She had never even _had_ a reaction like this before.

The cellar went dark as Fett climbed down behind her and shut the door. Nikita took a step back, wanting to put distance between them, but her foot caught the edge of the nearest step and she lost her balance. In an instant she felt Boba's hand clamp down around her arm, sending another current through her that left her breathless. The hunter pulled her out of her fall and around in front of him where she found her back once again pressed against the wall, but this time he stepped forward, pinning her in place with his body.

"Stop moving," he said in such a low voice it sounded like a purr. His body was pressed so close against hers that his voice sent a tingling vibration sweeping through her chest before it settled in her abdomen and morphed into a pool of heat, making her painfully aware that his leg was pressed in between her own in their current position.

The knight took a deep breath, attempting to try and calm her racing heart, but all she could breathe in was his scent. He smelled of metal and worn leather, with faint traces of smoke, oil, and sweat. As unappealing as she knew that should have been she found his scent intoxicating. It filled her senses, leaving her light headed and craving more.

By the Force, what was wrong with her?

_Something you'll need to realize and accept for yourself._

Her eyes grew wide as she stared up at Boba's helmet, just barely being able to make out the edges of it in the dark. The questions she had been trying so hard to ignore the past few months surfaced and began clicking into place with the same answer.

She _was_ in love with him!

Her revelation was cut short when a voice rang out upstairs.

"We know you're here, _Fett_. How about you come out and we'll settle the score for what you did to our friend back at the cantina!"

Nikita recognized the voice as belonging to Keener, one of the humans and the leader of the sleazy group, but what was he talking about?

"What did you do," she whispered to the hunter pressed up against her, struggling to keep her voice steady.

Boba didn't respond, keeping his attention fixed on the trapdoor. It wasn't long before the sound of footsteps grew louder and then stopped overhead. A different voice, one Nikita recognized as belonging to the Rodian, called out.

"Hey Keener, his ship's out back!"

"Well then why don't you go see if he's on it. We'll look around here."

The slightest shift in Boba's stance told Nikita he had just turned to look down at her and she didn't need the bond to know they were thinking the same thing. The two of them dove off the top of the stairs seconds before the blast from the triggered tripwire ripped through the upper floor and part of the cellar. Nikita slammed into the cellar floor shoulder first and didn't have time to recover before she was forced to roll out of the way to avoid one of the large metal work shelves falling on her. It crashed to the floor inches from her body, its contents scattering and shattering on the hard stone, adding to the dust cloud created by the explosion. She sat up with a pained grunt and had a brief moment of panic when she didn't see Boba anywhere. Jetpack thrusters firing up caused her to look up in time to see him disappear through the newly made hole in the cellar ceiling in an attempt to surprise the two remaining thugs.

The sound of blaster fire reached her ears as she pushed herself to her feet. She focused on the bond for a brief moment, sensing that Boba was fully immersed in the fight. If she was going to escape now would be her best chance. The knight shook off the pain in her shoulder and vaulted up the steps before leaping through the hole in the ceiling and dashing outside to where her rented landspeeder was. She jumped in and turned the key only for the ignition to refuse to turn over with a protest of weak wind-up clicks. The Jedi let out a curse, realizing either Fett or the idiots that had followed him out there had disabled it. Her gaze shifted to the other landspeeder parked a few feet away and she ran over to it. Judging from the dark mood echoing across the bond Keener and his brother would no longer need it. The engine cranked to life with a wheeze, but it would run and that was all she needed. She turned the vehicle toward Mos Eisley and floored it, hearing another explosion rip through the hut as she left her former mentor's home behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: So this chapter is loosely, very loosely, inspired by some of the comics I read the synopsis of while doing research, so it isn't intended to be an exact retelling of events.
> 
> Thank you for all the comments and kudos so far!


	21. Chapter 21

Disclaimer: I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Twenty-One

She wanted nothing more than to go home and attempt to sort out the tangled knots that were her emotions right now, but she decided to go to the cantina first. Keener had mentioned Boba had been there and that comment had caused an uneasy feeling to settle in the pit of her stomach.

Chalmun's appeared to be busy as always and Nikita let out a small sigh of relief as she approached. The place wasn't burned to the ground as she had feared it might be. The knight stepped into the entryway but had to press up against the wall as two men came around the corner dragging a third between them. She didn't think anything of it, having grown accustomed to patrons drinking themselves under the table, but as the men neared her the one they were dragging's head lolled back and she found herself staring into the half lidded slack features of death.

Nikita froze, staring into the dead man's familiar glassy eyes as he was dragged past, feeling like her blood was turning to ice in her veins.

"Calo…"

One of the patrons dragging Calo's lifeless body glanced at her but didn't say anything as they took him outside and out of her view. She turned back to the archway leading into the bar area, feeling her stomach churn in unease as she forced herself to walk forward. Her eyes scanned the room, taking in the destruction. Tables and chairs had been toppled, some looking as though they had been thrown into the walls. One table was broken in half, the splinters and shards of wood scattered across the floor indicating something very large and heavy had been thrown onto it.

She tore her gaze from the table only for it to land on the body of a Rodian slumped against the bar. The Jedi stepped closer in a daze but jumped at the sound of a bar glass being slammed down close to her. Her head snapped up and she found Wuher glaring at her, though she sensed his anger was over what had happened and not intentionally directed at her.

"You picked a hell of a day to take off," he grumped.

"Wuher… what happened," she asked in a weak voice, casting another look around at the damage.

"Boba Fett happened," he replied as he went back to drying glasses. "He barged in here, demanding to know who the boy ol' Ben brought in last week was and where he was now. This poor bastard was the first one he questioned," he waved a hand at the dead Rodian. "Then he beat Keener's lackey near to death for insulting him and—"

"Calo," she finished in a quiet tone.

Wuher paused and glanced at her before pointing across the bar. She turned and saw a table propped up against a booth and covered in blood splatter.

"He beat the shit outta that poor kid, then shot him after he let him go."

Nikita stared at the blood splattered table, barely hearing the words over the roar of her pulse. She had never particularly liked Calo but he was just a kid. He didn't deserve _this_. She turned back to Wuher, seeing him take a step away from her but not realizing it was because her irises had gone almost gold in her anger.

"Why…why did he _do this_ ," she growled.

Wuher shrugged. "He's Boba Fett. He made a name for himself by disintegrating his targets. Who's to say why he does anything the way he chooses to. He's a crazy bastard."

"He's a murderer," Nikita added under her breath.

And she was in love with him.

She angrily shoved the thought out of her mind as she walked behind the bar to grab a broom and start cleaning up the mess Fett had left in his wake.

As it turned out, cleaning up the chaos left behind by the bounty hunter was not helping her to keep from thinking about him and she found herself becoming more agitated by the minute. How could this be the same man who had almost gotten himself killed to save a child? The same one who had given up his food to her? The same one who had ended up comforting her the night Obi-Wan had died…

Her hands tightened around the broom at the rush of emotions the memories triggered. She had thought, rather tentatively, that there might have been more to Fett than his reputation implied but she couldn't allow herself to believe that now, not after this.

At least that's what she _wanted_ to make herself believe.

Nikita closed her eyes and rested her forehead against the broom handle. Why him? Why had she ended up in a life bond with an arrogant, merciless, murdering son of a—

_Watch it, Jedi._

She almost dropped her broom in surprise when the hunter's voice echoed across the bond, cursing herself when her pulse picked up tempo at the sound of his deep accent flowing through her mind.

_Why did you kill them,_ she asked, ignoring her body's reaction. _Why Calo? He was just a kid!_

_It's my job._

_There are other ways to get information than torturing and murdering people!_

_Ways that take too long. Witnesses leave a trail for others to follow. They would have tipped off the people who had the information I needed,_ he replied, his words sparking a fresh wave of anger in her.

_How can you justify this? I thought you had a code!_

_I do,_ he growled. _And I don't expect_ _ **you**_ _to understand that. I live by my code. The Jedi hide behind theirs!_

_Don't you_ _ **dare**_ _compare us you—_ Nikita cut off with wide eyes when the realization dawned on her that she and Boba were talking to each other directly through the bond. She had been so angry she hadn't noticed. The knight threw mental barricades up as fast as she could, cutting off the conversation without another word. She leaned heavily on the broom and let out a shaky breath. Obi-Wan had been mistaken. The bond was _much_ stronger than they had first thought.

* * *

Boba felt Solaris' surprise a few seconds before she threw up barriers and abruptly cut off her side of the link. It felt a lot like having a door slammed shut in his face, which irritated him even more than their argument had. He didn't expect her to understand his methods. There was a reason Jedi and bounty hunters were on opposite ends of the spectrum. Still, he had the overwhelming urge to march back into that cantina, get his hands on her and do… something. He couldn't say what.

The entire day had been both frustrating and confusing and he was ready for it to be over with. His unexpected run in with Solaris had complicated things. Fortunately for her his current hunt for Skywalker took priority, and if he was being honest with himself he still hadn't figured out what to do with her given their unique situation.

Encountering her after what had happened a week ago had been awkward, and as much as he tried to ignore it being that close to her again had felt… different than their previous encounters. He certainly hadn't been expecting the sensation that had rushed through him from her side of the link when he had grabbed her arm. It had caught him off guard and he had needed to remind himself that he was still wearing gloves. If the link between them reacted that way every time they were that close to each other it was going to make catching her even more problematic.

"Lord Vader will see you now."

The hunter surfaced from his thoughts and focused on the source of the voice, a young man in a crisp new officers uniform. He couldn't have been more than eighteen and as Boba watched him he noticed the boy was shaking like a leaf. He wouldn't last long here, just like the boy in the cantina, the one Solaris had been so upset about. Looking back on it, he probably could have let the boy go without jeopardizing his hunt…

His brow furrowed when he realized what he was thinking. Now was not the time to start second guessing himself and he refused to let that woman become his conscience. He had made his decisions for a reason. The matter was over with.

He pushed these foreign thoughts to the back of his mind, thoroughly irritated now, and swept past the boy in front of him without a word. The doors behind the officer slid open as he approached and he walked out onto the bridge of the Executor, not taking his eyes off of the figure standing in front of the large observation window.

Vader stood with his back to him, but Boba wasn't naïve enough to think the Sith was unaware of his approach. The hunter stopped a few feet away but Vader made no move to acknowledge him. Fett felt his irritation grow. As far as he was concerned he and Vader had nothing to discuss. He had only been tracking Skywalker for a few days, nowhere near enough time to locate the boy. If the Sith lord had called this meeting expecting results so soon then he was in for a rude awakening.

"I've been expecting you, bounty hunter," Vader's mechanized voice broke through the otherwise quiet of the bridge. "There are some matters I wish to discuss."

"Such as," Boba replied, not bothering to keep the snark out of his voice. He knew he was pushing his luck with the temperamental Sith but right now he wanted nothing more than to put an end to the day. This meeting was a waste of his time.

"Such as a recent splicer attack on the Jedi Temple archives where several files about a rogue Jedi named Nikita Solaris were stolen," Vader said, irritation lacing his tone at the bounty hunter's lack of respect. He turned and with three long strides placed himself directly in front of Fett, invading his personal space.

Boba glared up at the Sith lord but resisted the urge to step back. He was no stranger to Vader's intimidation tactics and he refused to play along.

"What does that have to do with me," he asked in a flat voice.

"You have been pursuing her, have you not? It was you who interfered with my assassin all those years ago and allowed Solaris to escape."

"Your assassin refused to back down and attacked me. _She_ allowed Solaris to escape. I warned her. Solaris is _my_ bounty."

"Yet you remain unable to capture her."

"She's gotten lucky," Boba replied, his eyes narrowing. Just where was this conversation going?

"So it would seem. Perhaps you believed her files would grant you an advantage over her?"

So that's what this was. The Sith was trying to trick him into letting something slip. While Boba could tell Vader had no actual proof that it was him who had hacked the Jedi Temple archives he knew he was toeing a dangerous line. All it would take would be one wrong word and Vader would have him.

"The only thing I care about where the Jedi is concerned is how much her bounty will bring," the hunter said, choosing his words carefully. "This is the first I've heard about any attack."

"Indeed," Vader replied, but he made no attempt to move out of Fett's space. "Solaris is a formidable woman. She was one of Obi-Wan's best students, but Korriban proved to be her downfall. Instead of embracing the dark side she resisted. Her concern for others proved to be her ultimate weakness. She would have been powerful in the dark side if she had learned to view others as a means to an end."

Boba bit the inside of his cheek to keep the sudden surge of anger at the Sith's comment from escaping past the confines of his helmet. Solaris may have been a lot of things, frustrating chief among them, but she was _not_ weak. He didn't know why he felt so compelled to defend her but he did know he needed to get out of there before he said something damning.

Vader had apparently taken his silence as a sign he didn't have anything to say because the Sith continued, "Solaris is a traitor and her fate lies with the rest of the Jedi. You would be wise to not interfere with my people again. That is all."

Boba turned sharply on his heel and headed for the door. He was seething at this point and if he didn't get off this station soon he was going to do something he regretted. The doors slid open and he was one step away from crossing the threshold when Vader's voice rang out again, stopping him in his tracks.

"Before you go, bounty hunter, I sense the faintest echo of the force around you. Any explanation as to why that is?"

Boba stiffened, having to snuff his surprise before Vader sensed it. He looked back to find the Sith lord staring out the observation window once again, but even with his back turned the Sith still radiated a dangerous aura. Out of the corner of his vision Boba saw the bridge crew exchange subtle looks between him and Vader, sensing the sudden change in atmosphere.

He thought he had put up enough mental barricades to protect himself from the Sith's probing but Vader had still sensed the bond between him and Solaris. The Sith lord already suspected too much as it was. If he found out about the bond Boba had no doubt _he_ would be the next one in the inquisitor's interrogation chair. They would use him to lure her out of hiding, or just kill him in the hope that she would die too. Both of those thoughts caused unease to thread through him but he forced his voice to remain flat as he addressed Vader.

"No idea."

Without waiting on a response he exited the bridge, making his way through the halls to the hanger bay at as brisk a pace as he dared, unable to stop from feeling as though the entire station was going to turn on him at any minute.


	22. Chapter 22

Disclaimer: I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Twenty-Two 

Two days hadn't seen an improvement in Nikita's mood and she had noticed even Wuher had begun keeping his distance during their shifts.

"Oi, lass, ya look a mite sullen. How's about ya tell ol' Tanlyn what's ailin' ya."

The knight quirked a skeptical brow at the patron as she set his scotch down in front of him. He was an older Weequay who didn't frequent the bar that often.

"No offense, but I doubt you really want to hear about my problems," she said in a flat tone.

"Ya don' know that, lass. I might even be able ta help yer problems disappear," he replied with a wave of his hand.

Nikita let out a humorless laugh and leaned on her elbows, her lips curling into a cross between a sneer and a smirk.

"All I have to do is say two words and you'll be tripping over yourself to get away from me," she said in a low voice, her eyes flashing with a dangerous gleam.

"Try me."

"Boba Fett."

The Weequay was already pushing away from the bar before the word "Fett" dropped from her lips.

"Sorry, lass. Yer on yer own with that one," he grumbled, raising his scotch in salute before walking to a booth in the back.

"That's what I thought," she responded in a sarcastic tone, her eyes narrowing as she watched him go. She whisked several empty glasses from the countertop and carried them over to the sink before returning to filling drink orders.

She hadn't interacted with Boba since she had cut off their mental argument the other day and she had thrown up mental blocks and tried her best to ignore the bonds existence, telling herself that she wanted nothing to do with it or the ass on the other side of it.

Saying that and doing it were two different matters, however.

Fett had killed countless people throughout his career, many of them innocent, and she couldn't help but feel partially responsible. She had saved him from dying, after all, and if she hadn't some of those people might still be alive.

But then _he_ would be dead.

Nikita closed her eyes, hating how much that thought made her chest ache. He was a bounty hunter. He put her life most at risk and yet she couldn't regret saving him all those months ago. She also couldn't seem to quash the thrill of anticipation that coursed through her when she thought about running into him again and had even caught herself longing to. Her last encounter with him surfaced in her mind and she absently rubbed her arm, remembering the heat from his hand burning against her skin even through his gloves. The memory caused a tingling wave of warmth to flow through her limbs and her pulse to quicken, forcing her to take a deep breath in an effort to calm herself. Even her body was against her, only too happy to remind her that she _wanted_ to be that close to him again. It was driving her insane.

While the knowledge of what he had done made her angry enough to want to hunt him down and beat him over the head with the nearest blunt object, the rational side of her knew she couldn't judge him solely on a black and white spectrum. She had seen another side of him, had felt it across the bond, and though they were small instances they spoke volumes about the hunter, perhaps more than even he realized. He wasn't good by any means, but he wasn't necessarily bad either.

Was she so different?

She had killed her fair share of people, and though it could be argued that her actions were in self-defense that didn't make living with the knowledge of what she'd done any easier.

The force gave a light, nudging pulse around her as she felt the bounty hunter's presence stir and grow stronger in the back of her mind, almost as if it were encouraging her to notice him. He was back on Tatooine but she could sense a strong feeling of agitation echoing from him, one he wasn't even attempting to block off. This struck her as odd and she idly wondered what could have made him so angry that he wasn't bothering to guard his mind.

The knight bit back a groan and glared down at the tap system in front of her, realizing who her thoughts were focused on. The call of a patron ordering another drink allowed her to busy her hands but did nothing to calm her racing mind. The combination of Boba's anger and lack of mental barriers was allowing all of his thoughts and emotions to flow across the bond without hindrance and Nikita did her best to block them out. Her own thoughts and feelings were conflicted enough without trying to puzzle out his as well.

She finished serving her last few customers and walked to the back of the bar, slumping against the counter with a heavy sigh. She needed a break from all this but she knew that being idle wasn't in her best interest right now. She would need to find somewhere she could keep busy and take her mind off things, somewhere far enough away from a certain bounty hunter that she could forget about the bond if only for a little while. She would also need to make sure she remained off the Empire's radar, but she had found throughout the years that the best way to do that was sometimes by hiding in plain sight.

With that in mind she pulled out her datapad. She had it set to keep track of the channel the Empire posted bounties on in order to keep tabs on her own, but she had noted that a lot of job listings were also posted on the channel. Though all of the listings were for jobs that the Empire deemed either too dangerous for their people or too beneath them to bother getting their own hands dirty, Nikita could see the advantage in working right underneath the nose of her enemy. The opportunities for snooping and sabotage were worth the risk. She scrolled through the listings, skimming over them until one caught her attention.

**WANTED**

The Empire is recruiting slicers  
for high profit information retrieval  
expeditions into quarantine sectors of Taris.  
All slicers must be proficient in obsolete  
encryption breaking. Payment will be based  
upon value of information retrieved.  
Report to Recruiting Officer Tara Jenkins  
at Imperial Headquarters if interested.

Nikita quirked a brow as she read over the ad. Taris, hm? Interesting. While walking into an Imperial stronghold wasn't the safest idea, she was curious as to the Empire's sudden interest in the broken planet. She recalled that Captain Toto had been transporting excavation equipment to Taris for the Empire when she had last encountered him, and smuggling rakghouls to the Separatists the time before that. There was no doubt a connection there.

And once again she found herself focusing on the presence in the back of her mind that she had grown so accustomed to in the past few months.

The knight let out a sigh of frustration and closed out of the channel with a swipe of her finger. The sooner she put a few planets distance between Boba and herself the better.

"Wuher, I'm going on vacation," she said, shooting the older bartender a flat look when she saw his shoulders sag in a poorly hidden sigh of relief.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Hello all! I'm back! The past few months have been very hectic, leaving me little time to focus on my story, but now my life is once again taking on some semblance of "order" so I'm back to my writing as much as I can be! I'm currently working on chapter 25 so I decided to go ahead and post these next two chapters. I apologize for this one being so short! Thank you to all of you who reviewed! I appreciate your support and I'm happy to know you're all still enjoying the story! If you don't hear from me again before the new year have a great rest of 2018 and happy holidays to all!


	23. Chapter 23

Disclaimer: I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Twenty-Three

[ _Welcome to the Taris Memorial Spaceport. For your security please have all identification information available for mandatory screening procedures. Thank you for your compliance._ ]

The automated voice that echoed throughout the spaceport sounded pleasant enough, but the sight of over a hundred stormtroopers milling about at various checkpoints wasn't comforting. Nikita pulled her leather jacket closer about herself to ward off the sudden chill of the force humming anxiously around her. She had left her vest on her ship, wearing only her tank top under her jacket, and her hair now draped over her shoulder in a long Dutch braid. It gave her a completely different appearance, one she hoped was enough to keep anyone from recognizing her from the wanted posters that kept cycling through the large holoprojectors mounted on the walls.

She waited until a sizeable group of people were walking past and fell in close behind them, glancing around the spaceport as she approached the nearest checkpoint. The building itself was magnificent with high arched steel support beams running up the walls at every junction of the octagonal structure. The domed roof was made entirely of glass allowing sunlight to filter down and illuminate the large space. A large bay window graced the far wall, showing off an elevated scenic view of the restored city.

She felt a twinge of sadness as the sight of the city brought back memories of Coruscant when she would sit at one of the large windows in the Jedi Temple on nights when she couldn't sleep, watching the lanes of skycar traffic zip through the city like ribbons of light. She tore her gaze away from the cityscape before she could become too nostalgic, focusing on the rest of the spaceport's interior. A tall rock waterfall fountain surrounded by several trees and plants she suspected were native to the planet occupied the center of the room and similar greenery adorned the walls, breaking up the industrial crispness of the white interior.

Nikita turned her attention back to the checkpoint in time to see the person in front of her get waved through and found herself facing a group of six stormtroopers. The one in front wore a green pauldron on the left shoulder plate of his armor, identifying him as a lieutenant.

"Identification," he commanded in a bored voice.

She handed over her false credentials, silently praying that they would hold up in the background check she knew he was running in his HUD system. She had spent almost three days creating a solid back story for the false I.D. she used on Tatooine and had then spent another day discreetly uploading it to the Imperial databanks so that it would appear to have always been in the system. She glanced at the troopers behind the lieutenant, noticing them tighten their grip on their weapons as they waited for an excuse to pounce.

"Ruth Tarsus," the lieutenant said after what felt like an eternity. He looked down at her brown leather duffel bag sitting by her feet. "You always travel this light?"

"I travel a lot in my line of work," Nikita answered as she turned her attention back to him. "I've learned to carry only what I need."

"Mm," he replied in a disinterested tone. "What brings you to Taris?"

"I'm here for the job the Empire posted." She felt the lieutenant's disinterest morph into disgust in an instant as his helmet tilted back up to her.

"Oh, you're one of _those_." He handed her credentials back to her, letting go of the cards before she even had a good grip on them as though he was worried he might catch some disease from her. "Go on. I've seen enough of _your_ kind to last me a lifetime. Just don't step out of line, slicer. We'll be watching you."

Nikita's eyes narrowed in an icy glare but she kept her mouth shut as she picked up her bag and walked past the troopers, all of whom took their time moving out of her way. She made her way through the rest of the spaceport with her senses on high alert, quickening her pace when she looked up in time to see her own face scrolling across the nearest holoprojector.

By the time she made it to the exit her pulse was racing in anticipation and she took a deep breath to try and steady her nerves. Upon stepping outside she found herself standing on a large platform with various taxi terminals set up around the edge. She made her way to the nearest one and hailed a skycar, turning to observe the other travellers as she waited for the system to process her request. Now that she was able to focus on something other than stormtroopers she noticed that most of the other travellers on the platform appeared to be there for the same reason she was. All of them were abuzz with talk about how much the Empire might be paying for information and she wondered just how many splicers had responded to the ad.

As far as great ideas went she was willing to admit that this one ranked pretty low on the list. She had just walked deep into enemy territory. If she was discovered there would be no hope of escape, but she was too far to turn back now. She looked down to the fake I.D. still in her hand at the name printed beside her photo and a small smile played across her lips.

"Thanks mom."

The hum of a skycar engine caused her to look up in time to see one land on the platform near the terminal. She threw her duffel bag onto the passenger seat before settling behind the wheel and pulling up a map of the city, quickly locating the Imperial H.Q. in the municipal district and setting the map to display the quickest route there before taking off.

The route she had chosen took her through several sectors of the city, a few of which were still under construction, but the areas that were finished were breathtaking. She had to hand it to the group in charge of the planets reconstruction. They were certainly more adamant about incorporating the organic nature of the planet rather than trying to snuff it out as their ancestors had done.

That wasn't to say that elements from the former city hadn't made their way into the new one though. The buildings had been rebuilt with the same unique curvature as the ones in the old Upper City had boasted. They gleamed in the sunlight in a mix of steel and glass with greenery draping over balconies and adorning rooftop gardens, but every so often she would catch sight of one of the original skyscrapers jutting up from the ground like a silent, petrified sentinel, dull and lifeless amidst the new construction. According to the research she had done before coming to Taris roughly three quarters of the planet had been rebuilt in the centuries following the orbital bombardment by the Sith. Restoration efforts had encountered many issues over the years, significantly slowing the process, and some speculated the planet would never be a functional ecumenopolis again.

The GPS in the skycar pinged, letting Nikita know she was nearing Imperial H.Q. The municipal district was one of the first districts to be rebuilt so the senator and other officials overseeing the planets reconstruction and well-being had a functional workspace. When the Empire had taken over they had wasted no time in displacing all but the basic workers with their own people.

She walked through the large entryway and had to immediately jump out of the way of a young man in Imperial uniform carrying a haphazard stack of datapads. He paused just long enough to shoot her a dirty look and snarl at her to "watch it" before pushing past her even though there was plenty of room for him to go around. The knight rolled her eyes and continued on into the building. Leave it to the Empire to hire a bunch of self-righteous assholes.

The reception area was spacious, with slate marble floors and white stone walls. The ceiling was high vaulted and made from light colored wood, no doubt from trees native to the planet. A large, extravagant chandelier hung as the primary light source and recessed lights spanned the rest of the ceiling to help keep the room well lit. The reception desk, made from a rich dark brown wood, sat in a large crescent against the back wall of the room.

Nikita glanced around the space as she approached the desk, silently admiring the design. It was far more extravagant than anything on Tatooine, but then again it had been built to house the senator so she supposed she shouldn't have been surprised by the scale of luxury. It was still a nice change of scenery from the endless desert and sandstone structures of her home planet.

The receptionist looked up at her as she neared the desk and she noted that the woman was a civilian.

"May I help you," the woman asked with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.

Nikita smiled back, not letting on that she sensed the woman's underlying nervousness as she answered, "I'm here to see Tara Jenkins."

The receptionist's eyes widened and she looked Nikita up and down, not even attempting to disguise her actions.

"You're a slicer," she asked at last in an uncertain voice.

"Do you think I would be here if I wasn't," Nikita replied, raising a brow at the question.

"O-of course not, Ma'am," the woman stammered, her anxiety increasing. "I apologize. It's just that you… well you don't look like any of the other slicers that have come through here."

"Really and just how many have responded to this job posting?"

"A lot. I don't know the exact head count but they've been pouring in since the beginning of the week."

Well that was an interesting bit of information. Just what was the Empire so eager to uncover that they would throw countless credits and resources into the remote planet?

"Tara Jenkins," Nikita said again when the receptionist kept staring at her and made no move to speak.

"O-oh yes, of course. Officer Jenkins office is on the second floor." She pointed to her left and Nikita followed her gesture to see she was pointing to a set of glass elevators. "Just take the elevator and her office will be the door along the far back wall."

"Thanks," the knight said as she pushed away from the desk and walked over to the elevator. As the glass doors slid closed behind her she glanced back at the receptionist and wondered what it must be like living day to day under the same type of people who had destroyed the planet and then sabotaged the first restoration efforts centuries ago. These poor people were probably just glad they still had their jobs at the end of each day.

The elevator doors slid open with a soft chime and Nikita stepped out onto the second floor to find herself in a large U shaped hall filled with private offices. She made her way down the hall branch she had stepped into and didn't have to walk very far before she spotted a line of people waiting to get into an office in the middle of the back wall. Judging from the diversity of the individuals, ranging from groomed to grimy and all looking a bit unsavory, she was pretty sure she was in the right place.

She stepped in at the end of the line hoping not to draw attention to herself, especially when she recognized some of the people ahead of her as regulars from Chalmun's. To her relief the line appeared to be moving fast and it wasn't long before she was the last one waiting to be seen. The door opened and the group that had been in front of her walked out, already discussing what they were going to do with their earnings.

She swept past them and through the doorway to find herself in a spacious office with dark hardwood floors and cream colored walls. The whole space was sparse in furnishings, having only a large desk in the middle of the room and a few filing cabinets set against the back wall. An older woman in her fifties sat behind the desk. Her gray hair was pulled back in a pristine bun and she wore a pair of spectacles low on the bridge of her nose. An eye patch covered her left eye, accenting her hawkish features, and she looked up at Nikita with an irritated scowl as the younger woman approached, regarding her in a condescending manner.

"Yes, what is it," she asked in an impatient, clipped accent.

"I'm here about the job posting," Nikita replied.

Jenkins had turned her attention to her terminal as Nikita spoke but now she looked back up, scrutinizing the Jedi even more over the rim of her spectacles.

"Well now, you don't look like the rest of the unkempt riffraff I've had walking through my door for the past week," she said at last in a lofty tone.

Nikita's eyes narrowed as she shifted her weight to one hip, crossing her arms and quirking a brow at the statement. "I clean up well."

"Indeed," Jenkins responded, though she sounded unimpressed. "Very well then, let me see your identification and I'll ready your forms."

Nikita handed over her I.D. once again, watching as the older woman typed her information into the terminal. When she was finished she handed back the cards along with an additional datapad.

"Your shift begins tomorrow at 0600 hours. Take this datapad to the command post on the outskirts of the Ruon Sector and they'll assign your area to you. As the ad stated, pay will be based upon the value of the information you retrieve and will be transferred to you at the end of each standard week. And no, this does not make you a member of the Imperial military. You are a freelancer and therefore still subject to all rules and regulations applied to standard citizens. Any questions?"

"Have any of the crews you sent out had issues with rakghouls?"

To Nikita's surprise Jenkins let out a chuckle before she answered, "My dear girl, rakghouls _don't_ exist. They were just a myth concocted by the Tarisian nobles to keep the lower classes in their place. As for anything _real_ you might encounter, a good blaster pistol should be more than sufficient to deal with. Now then if you're done asking about imaginary creatures I have work to do."

Jenkins returned to typing on her terminal, leaving Nikita to excuse herself. The knight turned and walked out at a brisk pace, feeling more than a bit irritated at the patronizing attitude she had been on the receiving end of since she'd arrived. Part of her had expected it, but not at the intensity with which she had experienced. Rakghouls didn't exist… Either Jenkins was an idiot who really believed that or the Empire didn't want people getting too scared to take the job. After all, there had to be a reason they were hiring freelancers instead of sending their own people out.

The Jedi didn't stop walking until she was outside and at the taxi terminal. She was surprised to see the sun already sinking below the horizon, not realizing so much time had passed since her arrival on Taris. She would need to hurry if she was going to find a place to stay with the influx of slicers answering the Empire's ad. Sleeping in her cramped ship cockpit wasn't the most appealing idea, made more so by the fact that she might be here for several weeks. She wasted no time once her taxi arrived, setting the quickest route to the commercial and tourism district.


	24. Chapter 24

Disclaimer: I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Twenty-Four

She was up well before dawn the next morning, bleary eyed and attempting to wake up with a cup of fresh caf as she made her way down to the lobby of the hotel. She usually enjoyed getting up early, but that was also when she got more than an hour of sleep.

It had been a few hours after dark by the time she had reached the commercial district and she had found all the hotels she went to were booked. Just as she was about to resign herself to sleeping in her ship her GPS marked a hotel farther out on the edge of the district. The Jedi had been relieved to find that the hotel still had open rooms, but that relief became threaded with uncertainty when she arrived to discover it was located in one of the original skyscrapers from the old city. The building had somehow managed to be spared during the Sith bombardment and over the years had been made structurally sound and refurbished.

Nikita still had her doubts about staying in a centuries-old building that had had everything around it, including the ground, blown up and her unease was only amplified when the clerk assigned her a room on the fifty-seventh floor, but her weariness won out over her concern. The trip from Tatooine to Taris had caught up with her and all she wanted was to sleep in an actual bed.

Sleep was harder to come by than she had hoped, however. Even though the bombardment had happened centuries ago the scar it had left in the force remained. She had sensed traces of it when she had first landed, but being in one of the original structures brought the sense of overwhelming despair and the unnatural vacuum of silence to almost unbearable levels. She had spent most of the night meditating in an attempt to block out the echoing void but even that had proven difficult as she kept catching herself focusing on the solid, anchoring presence in the back of her mind. Eventually she became so exhausted she fell asleep only to be woken an hour later by her alarm.

The knight grabbed a quick breakfast in the hotel lobby before heading outside. The morning air was crisp and cool and she took a deep breath, instantly feeling more awake before taking a look at her surroundings. She had been too tired to pay much attention to the area last night but this morning revealed that much of the area around the hotel were restaurants and shops.

Nikita took a sip of her caf as she pulled up a map of the city. Jenkins had told her to go to the Ruon Sector which, according to the map, appeared to be two districts away from her current location. The command post was located on the very edge of the sector, closest to the start of the quarantine zone. She glanced at her chrono, seeing that it was nearing the time she was supposed to check in, and closed the map with a flick of her wrist. Time to find out what the Empire was looking for.

One uneventful taxi ride later found her standing outside the Ruon Sector command post. It was obvious reconstruction efforts hadn't made it this far out yet. The area was overgrown with thick foliage that seemed a bit wilder and unruly, almost aggressive in its takeover of the area. It had been so long since she had seen so much greenery and she found it both beautiful and refreshing. Taris had been the right choice for her to come to, despite the risk the Empire's presence posed. It was far enough away from Tatooine that she could tune out the life bond and it was the last place anyone would think to look for her.

She walked into the command post and her eyes instantly settled on the most colorful thing in the room: a Trandoshan sporting an orange modified pilot suit and carrying a mortar gun standing in the far right corner against the back wall.

Nikita's eyes narrowed. She didn't know who he was, but it was obvious from his appearance that he wasn't an Imperial. It wasn't unheard of for the Empire to hire mercenaries as extra security, but the thought that he might be a bounty hunter was quick to cross her mind. She had suppressed her force signature to keep from being detected by any Sith who may have been skulking around but if she was dealing with a bounty hunter it would add a whole new set of obstacles to her remaining hidden.

Knowing she couldn't just stand around and draw attention to herself, the Jedi took a steadying breath and walked to the makeshift table in the center of the room. The building had an unremarkable white interior and several stormtroopers stood guard around the edges of the room, almost blending in to the walls behind them. The only piece of furniture in the space was a small rectangular table that looked to have been set up in a hurry. Two officers, a man and a woman, sat at the table, their crisp black uniforms being the only other contrast to the space. Behind them a hallway led farther into the building, likely to private offices for the higher chain of command.

As she neared the table her gaze flicked over to the Trandoshan to find his bright orange eyes trained on her. She looked away just as fast, focusing her attention back on the Imperials seated at the table. The man was the first to look up at her and she watched his nose wrinkle in disgust as he looked her over.

"Another slicer here for work," he said with an agitated sigh. "Very well, hand over your datapad."

Nikita complied and watched as he looked over her information. She could still feel the Trandoshan's predatory gaze on her and she did her best not to fidget as she willed the officer to hurry up.

"Here you are," the man said as he punched a few keys on the datapad and handed it back to her. "You've been assigned to sector E-52. A map has been uploaded to your datapad and you are authorized to check out a speeder bike to take you to and from your designated area. You are expected to be back by the end of each day cycle. If you are not you will be presumed dead and your contract will be forfeit. Do you understand?"

"Clear as crystal."

"Good. Off with you then," he said with a dismissive wave of his hand.

She turned and made her way back outside as fast as she could, wanting to be out of the small, hostile space. She checked out a speeder bike from the fleet supervisor and didn't relax until she was well out into the quarantine zone. The only signs that this area had seen any human activity were the fresh trails left behind by the Imperial patrols that passed through every so often. The knight slowed her speeder and looked around, taking note of her surroundings as she drove. Most of the area had been reclaimed by trees and shrubs and she could hear birds calling to each other in the treetops above. It appeared peaceful enough, but she had done enough research to know not to let her guard down. The wildlife that had surfaced on the planet after the bombardment had spent the past few centuries living in the toxic waste released from destroyed factories and had all become quite hostile and irradiated as a result.

A large shadow passed over her and she looked up to see a crooked metal cylinder jutting up from the ground, its top half fanning out like the petals of a monstrous flower. She stared at it, trying to figure out what it was supposed to be, until she remembered the city's lowest level had contained massive foundation supports that housed the generators used to power the rest of the city. Her gaze traveled past the broken generator and for the first time she noticed the cylindrical supports jutting up everywhere around her like gigantic tombstones, some even still connected to broken sections of the upper level they used to hold up. She became aware of a low mechanical hum filling the air, almost undetectable against the chirping of the birds and insects, and saw a faint flicker of light come from the exhaust vents on the nearest generator.

A sudden sense of unease threaded through her and she shook her head to clear her thoughts and forced herself to focus on the road. It was several more miles before her GPS informed her that she had reached Sector E-52 and she parked her speeder a few feet from the road. She was on the far side of the quarantine zone, close to an area known as The Broken Spine because of the way several high rises had fallen and decayed over the years. Beyond that was a dead zone of toxic waste left behind from a destroyed factory, still too potent for work crews to attempt to clean the area.

As far as she could tell Sector E-52 consisted of several buildings that had once been connected to each other through a series of glass walkways. Those walkways were now nothing more than twisted metal and broken glass. The buildings hadn't fared much better, being only a quarter of their original height. Thick vines and overgrowth had built up over the years and almost obscured them from view.

Nikita glanced behind her at the road. It was empty and there were no signs a Sith patrol was near. The area was densely wooded, allowing her some privacy, but she knew she would have to stay alert for surveillance drones. She pulled out her hacking device and set up a program to monitor the area for any visual and audio sensors within a twenty yard radius. When she was sure she was alone she stepped forward and drew her lightsaber, slicing through the foliage until she had cleared a path to the entrance. There she was confronted with a new problem: a door so old she had never seen one like it before. She stowed her saber and placed a hand on the door, studying it. It looked to be a security door that could only be opened with a pass key, meaning her hacking device would be useless against it.

The knight closed her eyes, concentrating until she had an idea of the inner workings of the lock. She pulled her hand away and passed it in front of the door, hearing a beep as it unlocked. It slid open slowly, its gears grinding and clanking until it ground to a halt with an earsplitting screech. Nikita winced at the sound and glanced at the surrounding woods, hoping the noise hadn't attracted the attention of the local predators. The area was still quiet and she let out a sigh of relief as she turned her attention back to the door. It had only opened a quarter of the way, leaving her just enough room to squeeze through if she turned sideways.

The idea of not being able to make a hasty exit if she encountered something inside that wanted to eat her wasn't comforting and she decided to try opening the door further. She stepped up to the opening but stopped and clamped a hand over her nose with a grunt of disgust when a blast of damp, moldy air hit her in the face. It was clear this room, at least, had been sealed for the past several hundred years. She couldn't sense any life in the room and she did her best to brace against the rancid smelling air as she wedged herself in the opening between the door and doorframe.

The knight pulled her legs up, placing her feet against the door. She pressed her back to the doorframe and pushed against the door as hard as she could, being rewarded with another earsplitting screech of metal on metal as it shifted several more inches. She kept this up until she had managed to pry the door halfway open before she dropped her feet down, leaning back against the frame for a quick rest. It would've been so much easier to use the force, but she had to appear normal like everyone else. The Imperials were probably going to be sending out regular patrols to keep an eye on the slicers and they would get suspicious if she began getting past doors and firewalls faster than the others. She was going to have to get through a lot of this the old fashion way, something that was turning out to be more of a challenge than she had first thought.

Nikita let out a sigh and stepped into the room. The light coming through the doorway only illuminated the first few feet of the space and she cast a glance back outside to make sure she was still alone before igniting her lightsaber once more. The lilac glow revealed what appeared to have once been a reception area. Large cracks ran through the floor and walls and parts of the ceiling had collapsed leaving the metal support beams within visible. Water was trickling down from several areas in the ceiling and walls, likely from broken pipes.

That explains the smell at least, she thought as she looked around. There wasn't much to see in the room. A reception desk sat in the center of the room, much like the one in the Imperial H.Q. building but this one was made of metal and glass instead of wood. A good portion of the desk had been crushed by the caved in ceiling but the terminal had managed to survive with what appeared to be minimal damage. Her eyes swept past the desk to the back of the room and she spotted another security door. What had this place been that they would be so rigorous with their security?

Deciding to begin with the terminal Nikita walked forward and around the desk but froze when she heard a nasty snap underneath her boot. The Jedi jumped back and looked down to see what remained of a skeletal hand where she had stepped, several of its fingers now crushed. She lowered her saber closer to the floor to find two skeletons huddled under the desk, the one whose hand she'd stepped on sprawled with its skull cradled in the others lap. The two looked to have been hiding in their last moments, but as her gaze swept back over the one she'd stepped on she noticed a hole in its left temple. A frown pulled at the corners of her mouth. That hole looked to have been made by a blaster bolt. She examined the other skeleton but couldn't see any obvious signs of trauma. They had been hiding from something, however, and judging by the blaster shot to the head whatever it was seemed to have caught up with them.

The knight tore her gaze from the bodies and cast another glance around the room, once more feeling a sense of unease course through her. Just what the hell had she walked into?


	25. Chapter 25

Disclaimer: I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Twenty-Five

It had been almost a full week since Nikita had come to Taris and so far all she had to show for it was a persistent crick in her neck. The Jedi groaned and tipped her head to the side in a vain attempt to get her neck to pop. She was beginning to think her hotel bed was the same one that had been there from before the bombardment.

A ping caused her to pause in her massaging of her neck and glance at her datapad to see that another file had been recovered. She opened the file and skimmed over its contents before sending it over to the datapad the Imperials had issued her. So far the only thing of interest she had come across was the fact that someone had attempted to delete the file database from the reception terminals memory bank, but she had no idea why. She had spent the past five days recovering and decrypting what files she could and none of them contained anything of extraordinary value. Calendar schedules, payroll statements, and memos, but nothing she would think warranted a memory wipe. It was unusual and the knight was certain it had something to do with why the two people she had discovered under the desk had been killed.

The amount of information she was sending in was enough to keep the Imperials satisfied and out of her business, but she hadn't failed to notice that they had increased their patrol numbers as the days passed. The official story was that it was added security for the slicers in response to some recent ferrazid hound attacks but Nikita knew that wasn't true.

After some careful snooping and well placed questions she learned that several of the Imperial patrols and even some of the slicers had gone missing within the past two days. The location of the attacks appeared to be random, which was her main indicator in ruling out the hounds. The beasts were very territorial but they didn't usually go out of their way to attack people and they tended to be blaster shy. Whatever preyed on these people was extremely intelligent and wasn't afraid of blasters.

There was only one creature on Taris like that.

The suspected rakghoul attacks had put her on edge and she became more cautious when she was out in the field, going so far as to set up several proximity sensors around the building. It didn't help any that the force had begun humming with an almost anxious anticipation as of yesterday. It had given her no warnings, but its incessant buzz told her that something had changed; she just had no clue what that something was.

Out of curiosity she relaxed her mental blocks and turned her focus inward to the bond, the last time she had paid attention to it being the first night she'd arrived on Taris. Being on a different planet had helped dull the link but she remembered still being able to feel the hunter's presence in the back of her mind if she focused on it. Now she couldn't feel anything. The bond was still there, strong as ever, but Fett had tightened his mental blocks to the point where she wasn't able to sense anything from his side of the link. He had completely closed his mind off from her. She supposed she should have expected it. Neither of them wanted this connection. It had only been a matter of time before Boba figured out how to block his side of the bond off to the point where he wouldn't be able to notice it anymore.

Nikita knew the moment they were close to one another again their proximity would melt these barriers as easily as it had all the others in the past, but for now the distance from Tatooine to Taris and the strength of the bounty hunter's barriers was enough to grant her sole occupancy of her mind for the first time in months. That had been why she came here in the first place, to get far enough away from Boba that she could forget about the fact that she was mentally bonded to a man who thought it was okay to torture and kill people for information. A man whom she knew wouldn't stop chasing her until he had succeeded in turning her over to the Empire. A man whom she was quickly finding out she couldn't quench her feelings for no matter how much she scolded herself. She wasn't naïve enough to believe her feelings might be reciprocated, no matter how strange Fett had acted in some of their more recent run-ins. He was only concerned with the price on her head.

Still, she hadn't realized how… quiet it would be without his familiar presence in the back of her mind.

Another ping from her datapad drew her from her thoughts and she glanced over at it from her seat on a large chunk of rubble.

_[WARNING: PARTIAL DATA CORRUPTION DETECTED. ATTEMPTING TO RECOVER FILE COULD RESULT IN FULL DATA LOSS._

_PROCEED: Y/N]_

The knight leaned over and told the program to proceed before standing and stretching, letting out a small squeak as several vertebrae in her back popped. She never thought she would actually miss the cot in her apartment.

She checked her chrono and was surprised to find it was already after noon. She had been so caught up on recovering the last few files from the reception terminal that she had lost track of time. Her datapad was still attempting to retrieve the last file from the terminal and it would need to be decrypted afterwards, which, depending on its size and how the information it contained was encoded could take the rest of the day.

She stood and made her way over to the security door at the back of the room, being careful not to trip on any of the chunks of debris that littered the floor. She had given the door a brief examination earlier in the week but her main priority had been the reception terminal. Now she would have to find a way past the door and further into the complex if she was going to keep gathering files to send in. The door was the same style as the one leading into the building, only allowing entry with a keycard. She had searched the room earlier, hoping one of the deceased personnel still had their access card on them, but her search had turned nothing up. That left only one option for getting the door open, one that she really didn't want to do for fear of the Imperials getting suspicious.

The Jedi closed her eyes, focusing on the door just as she had the other one and passed her hand in front of it. A horrible groan filled the air as the gears struggled to comply with her manipulation, but all the centuries worth of rust and neglect won out in the end and the door remained firmly shut.

Nikita looked back up, moving her hand to rub her chin with a thoughtful frown. She could get past the door with some heavy force manipulation, her first attempt being just a light nudge to test how damaged it was, but she wasn't sure she could come up with a good excuse to the Imperials as to how a 120-pound woman ripped a multi-ton door out of a wall. She would have to request a team to come out and cut through the door. That was going to lengthen her amount of time spent in close proximity to the Imperials, increasing her chances of being recognized, but she didn't have many other options at her disposal.

Her datapad pinged for a third time, the sound echoing throughout the dilapidated space, and she walked back to the reception desk to see a notification saying the last file had been partially decrypted but much of it was too damaged to recover. She opened it to find an email, broken up and badly corrupted, but the message was still somewhat legible.

_[CORRUPTION DETECTED. MAJORITY DATA RECOVERY PROTOCOL ACTIVATED]_

_[CRITICAL ERROR {DATA NOT FOUND}],_

_A lot has hAP5gP7N since … last spoke. Administrator MbuROzS Gy* has moved forward with his &$zY project and now {ERROR} entire 3Rp0_ _h_ _working on it. And don't 8v$N get me 9 rK5r on that damn yUr^# in charge of all the {DATA NOT FOUND}._

_{ERROR} I'm scared. They've Uj1r4Ed bringing in {ERROR} $%^0M the Undercity for live #BniMens. … don't feel safe here anymore. All … will take is one of those things … and we're all dead, or worse. I'm Bk &!s5ing everything by writing Eu7)e but can't stay silent any longer…. know I'm only a secretary but … see and hear a lot more than 6T$*t(P think I do. Don't worry, I'll be sure to delete this from the mem^yH2b#Eank so no one can trace it. J*9g$V will be with me so I'll be safe. See you F9*%._

_Arien_

Nikita arched a brow as she looked from the message to the two skeletons still under the desk. They apparently hadn't been as safe as they thought considering they never made it out of the building. She skimmed over the e-mail a second time. The secretary had mentioned bringing something up from the Undercity for live… specimens, maybe? The corruption was making it difficult to decipher. The secretary could have been referencing rakghouls. They were the only creatures that had thrived down in the Undercity, but why would anyone risk bringing live ones into the facility? Were they working on creating a cure for the plague?

The Jedi briefly considered whether she should send the file to the Imperials or not before going ahead and transferring it over. Maybe this information would be enough to get the Empire to show its hand and reveal if her suspicions about their motives on Taris were accurate.

The information hadn't been sent off for more than a minute before the Imperial datapad let out a loud chime she wasn't familiar with. She reached over and grabbed it, seeing a message now displayed across the screen.

[All slicers report to Ruon Command Post immediately.]

She frowned. That had to be a coincidence. There was no way they could have processed the file that fast, not with dozens of other slicers submitting information at the same time. It was unusual for the Imperials to call them back from the field and she wondered if there had been another attack. If so then maybe the Empire was getting cold feet about this crusade into Taris' quarantine sectors. She let out a snort at the thought as she grabbed her datapad, disconnecting it from the reception terminal, and grabbed her coat that she had draped over the side of the desk. That was wishful thinking. The Empire wasn't known for running away from projects. They usually just kept throwing workers and credits at problems until they got what they wanted. She just wished she could figure out what that want was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: I apologize for how short this chapter turned out. It was a lot longer in my notebook!


	26. Chapter 26

Disclaimer: I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Twenty-Six

The knight slowed her speeder bike to a crawl as the command post came into view. There were only two stormtroopers out front, but their stances were relaxed and the sound of laughter echoed across the clearing as they talked. Her gaze swept across the area, looking for any signs that something was amiss. She hadn't ruled out the possibility that the Imperials had discovered who she really was, but judging by the fact that no one had started shooting at her she was beginning to dismiss the idea. She had taken painstaking steps to make her false credentials appear flawless. It would take a very in depth background check to uncover the discrepancies in the false records, something she knew the Imperials weren't likely to waste their time on. With over a hundred slicers having answered the job listing to come to Taris an in depth background check on every one of them would cost the Empire too much money, not to mention they would probably be able to sink an entire star destroyer in the amount of criminal records that they would find.

She parked her speeder bike several yards from the building and dismounted, shooting a casual glance back at the troopers. They were still conversing, having not even spared her a second look upon her approach. That was good, but it didn't keep a feeling of unease from forming in her stomach.

It's okay, she thought to herself. They still don't know you're a Jedi.

Unless that Trandoshan was actually a bounty hunter as she had feared and had recognized her. Not the most helpful thought at the moment.

She took a deep breath, attempting to calm her jittery nerves, and started walking to the building, reaching out as much as she dared to see if she could sense any warnings through the force. All that answered her was the same anxious hum that had persisted for the past two days.

Nikita stepped inside the command post to see the same scene that greeted her every morning: the two officers seated at the table in the center of the room, four stormtroopers stationed in the corners, and the Trandoshan by the back wall next to the hallway. She took a quick headcount of the room as she approached the table, her gaze settling on the hallway before it slid over to the Trandoshan and she found herself staring into his predatory gaze. She looked away quickly, feeling uncomfortable under his stare. Where were the other slicers? The message sent out had called for all of them to report back. Unless…

Her eyes snapped back to the Trandoshan when he took a step forward and she froze mid step, listening to the distinct clacking sound of armor plates bumping together as the stormtroopers around the room followed his lead and leveled their weapons at her. The two officers stood up from the table, drawing their pistols and backing away until they were standing on either side of the hall entrance.

"Hands up, Jedi," the woman said as the other officer turned and disappeared down the hall. Nikita complied, raising her hands in a slow gesture of surrender until they were level with her head, but her mind was racing. She should have sensed this, should have noticed something was amiss when she didn't see any of the other slicers outside the command post. The Imperials must have sent that message just to her in an attempt to lure her into a trap. How could she be so stupid! She had gotten careless and it was going to cost her life.

And Boba's.

The force still hummed around her, the anxious anticipation it was exuding amplifying her own anxiety. Why hadn't it warned her?

Movement at the end of the hall caught her attention and she looked up to see a man dressed in black and red robes round the corner, the officer that had left earlier close behind him as he sauntered up to stand just inside the doorway. His reddish blonde hair was styled in a classic military undercut and his eyes were an unnatural shade of crimson. As he neared Nikita noticed a pattern line of dots tattooed across the bridge of his nose, the dark ink clashing against the paleness of his skin. He looked to be only in his mid-twenties but she knew better than to underestimate him. The dark side enveloped him, making the very air feel oily and heavy in the confined space.

"This is the one you requested us to detain, Inquisitor Hunsan," the female officer said.

Inquisitor?

Oh shit.

"We've been expecting you, Nikita Solaris," he said, his lips twisting in a sneer.

"I don't know who you're talking about," Nikita replied in a calm voice as she fought to hide the uneasy wave of panic building in her chest. "My name is Ruth Tarsus."

The Sith laughed, a cold, callous sound. "Games will do you no good now, Jedi. We learned about you from a very reliable source."

She frowned. A reliable source? She hadn't told anyone she was coming to Taris. Who could have tipped off the Imperials as to her presence here? Her gaze slid over to the Trandoshan but she didn't sense any hostility coming from him, only indifference. Then who…

Her eyes widened when she realized the only possible person who could've figured out where she was and revealed her identity to the Imperials. She reached out without thinking and her consciousness collided with Boba's so hard and fast it felt as though she had turned and physically run into him, causing her to wince. He was here, on Taris! The barriers he had put up were dissolving so fast she could feel them cascading like sand in the wake of his familiar presence rising up and solidifying once more in the back of her mind. Before she could even attempt to draw back and recover from the sudden mental collision she had just had with the bounty hunter the door to the command post slid open and she heard footfalls that she would have been able to recognize anywhere.

"That's her."

Nikita didn't dare turn around, keeping her eyes glued to the inquisitor even as he turned his attention to the bounty hunter now blocking the exit behind her. She was still angry at Boba, more so now because he had just blown her cover in yet another attempt to capture her, one he might succeed at this time given her current situation. Yet the minute his deep accented voice had sounded behind her her heart had picked up tempo, sending a thrill of excitement through her body that she hoped he couldn't sense over the bond.

"Very well," the inquisitor's unnerving stare was focused back on her. "The sum of her bounty will be transferred to your account, bounty hunter. You may go." He motioned for the officer's to arrest her and they both stepped forward, the woman keeping her blaster trained on the Jedi while the man pulled out a pair of stasis cuffs. Nikita's mind was working overtime, desperately trying to come up with some plan of escape as she watched the Imperial approach her.

"That's not what we agreed, _Sith_ ," Boba said in a low, angry tone, bringing all her panicked thoughts to a screeching halt.

She saw the officer approaching her pause and the Trandoshan look from Boba to the inquisitor with narrowed eyes. Just what had they agreed on? Boba was getting her bounty, after all these years. That was what he wanted, wasn't it?

"Ah yes, our _agreement_ ," Hunsan said in a mocking tone. "I'm afraid our agreement is no longer valid. You see, this Jedi will be far more valuable to _my_ research rather than handing her over to _you_."

Nikita heard the inhale behind her as Boba readied to speak but she beat him to it, "What research?"

The inquisitor turned his attention back to her and smiled, causing her to shudder. It took a special kind of being to be an inquisitor, and whether willing or unwilling at first the job eventually twisted the person until they no longer saw another individual as anything other than a specimen to be dissected. It was this desensitized sadism that made inquisitors so unstable and dangerous and she saw hints of that madness now, lurking in the Sith's eyes.

"I suppose I do owe you some explanation, Jedi. After all, it's thanks to you that our plans can finally move into the next phase with the discovery of the Kumatori Bio labs."

Nikita thought back to the partial corrupted email she had recovered and her eyes narrowed.

"Why do you care about centuries old research on rakghouls?"

"Well well, you're not as incompetent as I first thought," Hunsan mused with a raised brow. "The Kumatori Bio labs were built to study the effect of hazardous chemicals on the environment in the event of a containment breach in one of Taris' many factories. Sith records indicate, however, that Dr. Kumatori had begun researching a different kind of biohazard, a living one."

"And," Nikita said, her eyes briefly flicking to the officers on either side of the inquisitor before settling back on him. She was only half listening to what he was saying, the majority of her focus being put into watching for an opening she might use to escape. Her chances were slim, but the more she kept the Sith talking the more time it gave her to come up with an exit strategy.

"I don't expect you to be able to see the opportunities presented with this discovery, Jedi," Hunsan snarled, offended by her apparent lack of interest. "My plans will be greater than even the concept of the death star! Imagine being able to control the rakghoul virus. Just the very threat of unleashing it would terrify entire planets into falling in line! All opposition to the Empire could be snuffed out in one well planned strike. The Sith would remain the rightful rulers of the galaxy indefinitely!

"You know that'll never work," Nikita replied with a raised brow. "There's already a cure for the plague. You can't threaten someone with something they can buy a solution to."

"Ah, a simple matter to correct, Jedi. A few alterations to the genetic structure of the virus will render the cure useless. From there it will be a simple matter to develop a new antidote, one only the Empire will have access to." He paused and let out a chuckle. "I'm afraid you'll have to forgive me. I tend to get ahead of myself. None of this will be possible if we can't successfully mutate the plague into an airborne pathogen. That is where you come in. You and all the rest of the scum we hired."

Nikita stiffened when she realized just what the inquisitor intended for her and the rest of the slicers. His cold laugh met her ears once more, sending a chill of dread down her spine.

"Oh you didn't think we actually planned to let the lot of you go with all the information you decrypted, did you," he asked with a sneer. "The slicers will make excellent test subjects for our virus modifications, and I'm curious to see the effect it will have on you, Jedi. It will be a much more productive end than just letting you rot in a cargo hold. Don't you agree bounty hunter?"

Nikita felt the growl of fury from the hunter behind her reverberate through her mind but he made no outward sound. Hunsan's gaze slid from her to Boba, the Sith no doubt sensing the anger radiating from him. Now was as good of a chance as she was going to get. The knight flexed her fingers and felt the familiar leather grip of her lightsaber hit her palm as it flew from its resting place in her boot.

The female officer was the first to notice the weapon in the Jedi's hand and she shouted out a warning to the others as she opened fire. Nikita deflected the shots with a simple flourish, the loud hum of her saber igniting punctuated by the cry of pain as the bolts ricocheted back and hit the officer. She didn't wait for the others to respond, throwing her hand out and flinging the table at the inquisitor. The table took out the other officer before slamming into both Hunsan and the Trandoshan and sending them toppling back into the hall.

Something wrapped around Nikita's wrist and pulled tight, yanking her arm back and almost causing her to drop her lightsaber. She twisted with the pull and saw a grappling cord around her wrist.

Boba.

The knight let out a snarl of irritation and pulled her lightsaber to her left hand with the force before spinning against the hunter's pull, swinging her saber up in a wide arc and slicing through the cord. She came out of her spin and dropped to one knee, channeling the force and slamming her palm flat against the floor. A massive shockwave swept through the room, knocking everyone off their feet and blowing them back.

She jumped up and bolted for the door, hearing Hunsan yell for her to be stopped over the groaning of the dazed troopers. Boba had been standing in the doorway and the blast from the shockwave had blown him backwards through the doorway and out of the building. Nikita saw him starting to push himself up and quickened her pace, jumping over him before he could react.

The two troopers on guard opened fire as she ran past, the bolts biting into the ground around her. She made it to her speeder bike and cranked it to life as fast as she could, taking off back out into the quarantine zone even as she heard the familiar crack of a rifle and felt the bolt ricochet off the armor plating of the speeder.


	27. Chapter 27

Disclaimer: I own nothing from the Star Wars Universe.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

There weren't many options for places to hide on Taris. The wilds were too dangerous and the Imperials would have locked down the city by now, likely having already posted troopers at her hotel and the spaceport to capture her should she risk attempting to leave. She was trapped on the planet until they either found her or gave up their search. Her best option was to go back to Sector E-52 and the Kumatori Bio labs. It wasn't a great strategy considering she only had access to the reception room, but she pushed her doubts to the back of her mind and continued on.

She reached the sector in record time and quickly hid her speeder behind a grove of trees before shutting it down and sprinting inside the building. Everything was as she'd left it, which now felt like it had been years ago instead of a little over an hour. The knight looked around in a desperate attempt to find somewhere to hide, but aside from the obvious desk the room was bare. The approaching whine of several speeder bikes caught her attention and she looked back at the doorway, breathing out a curse.

"Come on, Nikita. _Think_ ," she scolded herself as she glanced around the room once more. Her gaze landed on the large pile of rubble behind the desk and traveled up to the ceiling. In the dark of the room she could just barely make out the outline of the steel support beams holding up what was left of the floor above.

Realizing she didn't have any other choice, Nikita ran to the pile of rubble and jumped, landing in a crouch on the nearest beam. She crept back to where some of the ceiling was still holding up, making sure she wasn't sharing the space with any creatures before settling in the shadows to wait.

It wasn't long before the proximity sensors she placed around the building sent an alert to her datapad, signaling movement on the perimeter. A figure appeared in the doorway several seconds later, their identity obscured as they stood outlined by the only light source in the room. She watched them hesitate before they took a cautious step inside, the familiar green and white of their armor becoming visible. Her eyes narrowed as she stared down at the Mandalorian. She should have known Boba would be the first to show up. She was still suppressing her force signature enough that the inquisitor wouldn't be able to sense her, but she couldn't block off the bond.

The sound of additional footfalls caught her attention and she looked past Boba to see the inquisitor step through the doorway. The Trandoshan followed soon after, his clawed feet making no sound on the permacrete floor. He stepped up beside Fett and the two of them walked farther into the room until they were near the reception desk and away from the inquisitor.

"That door is locked," the Trandoshan rasped, his orange eyes focusing on Boba. "Are you sure she's here?"

"She's here," Fett replied, and Nikita felt the slightest brush of his consciousness against hers.

"Ah, the Kumatori Bio labs," Hunsan marveled with a twisted grin. "The future of the Siths rightful reign over the galaxy rests within this fetid relic."

Boba turned to the inquisitor with the same angry tone from earlier, "We had a deal, Sith."

"Mm yes, a deal I already explained why I called off," Hunsan mused with a raised brow. "You're already going to be paid her bounty. Why do you want her so much if you're just going to turn her in to my master?"

Boba didn't answer but Nikita saw him tense and felt his mood darken over the bond.

"Consider yourselves fortunate, bounty hunters," Hunsan continued. "For you two have the privilege of witnessing the first steps to a new age!" He raised his arms out as he spoke and Nikita thought she felt a slight tremor run through the beam she was crouched on.

"Not much call for bounty hunters if everyone's a plague ridden mutant," the Trandoshan replied. "Bad for business."

"Perhaps, but you two needn't concern yourselves with that. Your services are no longer required."

There was no mistaking the tremors now, and Nikita's eyes went wide in horror as she watched the cracks in the wall behind the Sith grow and spread. The inquisitor lifted his hands higher and she saw both bounty hunters tense and draw their weapons. Before they could take aim at the crazed Sith he clenched his fists and the wall behind him gave a massive groan and collapsed in an avalanche of dust and rubble, destroying the door.

"No!" the word was out of her mouth before she could stop herself. She jumped down from her perch, landing near Boba and storming forward only to feel his hand clamp around her arm and pull her back. The contact sent a jolt through her body but she ignored it, her eyes almost glowing in anger as she stayed focused on the Sith.

"You damned idiot," she growled, straining against the bounty hunter's grip. "That was the only way out of this place! What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Nothing at all, Jedi, for you see when my troopers dig through this collapsed entry they will find you and I the sole survivors of a gruesome duel. Sadly I will be unable to stop you before you murder these two bounty hunters in your escape attempt and will be forced to… incapacitate you in self-defense." He drew his lightsaber, illuminating the room in a blood red glow. "Shall we begin?"

The force pulsed in warning around Nikita and she burst into motion, ripping her arm from Boba's grip and drawing her own saber as she jumped forward to intercept the Sith. The energy beams clashed together with a loud hum that echoed off the walls and she heard the Trandoshan let out a hiss behind her.

Hunsan pushed her saber back and to the side, attempting to break her defense but she twisted out from under him and threw her hand out to fling him back with a force push. A sudden stillness filled the air as the Sith met her force push with one of his own, his outstretched hand inches away from hers. She grit her teeth and planted her feet as the pressure of the force lock strained against her, the energy building like a contained explosion.

The two force wielders were so focused on trying to overpower the other in their battle of wills that they were both caught off guard by the sudden round of mortar fire that landed between them. The waver in their concentration broke the force lock and it exploded, blowing both of them backward. Nikita twisted around in time to hit the wall behind her feet first and used her momentum to launch herself back into the air, landing in a crouch and quickly looking around for the inquisitor but he was nowhere to be seen.

"Get back!"

She jumped at the sudden command and looked over at Boba in time to see him fire off several rounds at something above her. The unmistakable sound of a lightsaber igniting overhead caught her attention and her eyes snapped up to see Hunsan dropping down from the ceiling beams in a surprise attack. The Jedi rolled out of the way, feeling the heat of the lightsaber as the Sith's swing narrowly missed her, the energy beam sinking into the floor from the force of his blow. She came up with her lightsaber at the ready for another attack but Hunsan's attention was focused on something behind her.

"You don't get to help the Jedi, scum," he snarled, ripping his saber out of the ground in a fury. He deflected several more blaster rounds and threw his hand out. Nikita felt the invisible grip close around her throat and instinctively raised a hand to her chest as she tried to gasp for air… and was still able to breathe? She frowned. How was that possible? The inquisitor was choking her, wasn't he? A strangled gurgle sounded behind her and she whipped around to see Boba clawing at his throat, the inquisitor's death grip holding him several feet off the ground.

The Trandoshan took aim at the Sith but Nikita was faster. She jumped to her feet and charged the inquisitor. She had to break his choke hold on Boba. The knight swung for Hunsan's outstretched arm but he was ready for her. He sidestepped her swing and flicked his wrist to the side, flinging Boba into the Trandoshan just as he fired a round from his mortar gun at the Sith. The wayward mortar shell hit the ground next to Nikita and exploded, knocking her off balance and causing her next swing to go wide as she struggled to recover. Hunsan blocked her attack with ease and pushed her back before lunging forward and striking her leg. She screamed as she felt the energy beam burn into her thigh, the searing pain causing her leg to give out. She barely managed to catch herself as she fell to her knees, crying out again as the fall sent liquid fire shooting through her leg.

Hunsan let out a cold laugh as he kicked her lightsaber out of her reach. "Foolish Jedi, throwing yourself in harm's way to protect a bounty hunter, your sworn enemy. How predictably honorable," he spat with a sneer. "Now then, all that's left is to tie up loose ends."

He turned his attention to the two bounty hunters as he spoke, watching with an amused expression as they picked themselves up off the floor and sank into battle ready stances. Nikita watched them with unease. She knew Boba was a formidable fighter, and from the looks of it the Trandoshan wasn't one to be trifled with either. They would no doubt give the Sith a run for his credits, but they were trapped in a small space with no room to maneuver and the inquisitor had the force at his command. She had to get up and back in the fight. There was too much at stake.

She took a deep breath and tried to stand only to let out a gasp as her leg still refused to take weight. She had thought being shot hurt but this was excruciating. Her attempt to stand caused a fresh wave of pain to course through her, leaving spots dancing in her vision and a feeling of nausea bubbling up in her stomach.

_Stop._

Nikita looked over at Boba, surprised to hear his voice ring through her mind. His visor was still trained on Hunsan but she both felt and heard the strain in the single word. He shifted and she noticed he was leaning more of his weight onto his left leg, though he was doing his best not to make it obvious. The Jedi mentally cursed herself. She had forgotten about the bond in the chaos of the fight, but now that she was injured her proximity to Boba made it impossible for him to block out her pain. She could feel it echoing across the link, bleeding into his mind, and she tried in vain to build mental buffers to keep the backlash in check so it wouldn't overwhelm him. They were too close, their proximity blasting through any barriers she attempted to build. This wasn't good. They had to get away from the inquisitor as soon as possible.

A deranged chuckle caught her attention and she glanced over to see Hunsan looking between her and Boba.

"Oh, this is _perfect_ ," he said with an almost maniacal glee. "I was wondering why you wanted the Jedi so badly, bounty hunter. Wanting to lock your little weakness away somewhere safe, hm," he paused and tapped a finger to his chin as he continued studying them. "I must admit you two are a rare find. I think I'll keep you alive for my experiments as well, bounty hunter. After all, killing you would only cost me the pair. I wonder what will happen to the other if only one of you is mutated—" His rant was interrupted by a loud whirring as an amethyst blur hurled past, slicing his arm off at the shoulder.

The inquisitor screamed in fury and pain as he whirled around in time to see Nikita pluck her lightsaber from the air as it boomeranged back to her, twirling it in a quick flourish to slow its momentum. Her eyes locked on his and she pushed herself up to one knee, adrenaline and anger temporarily numbing her pain.

"You will not lay a hand on him you son of a bitch," she growled, the gold flecks in her eyes flashing with a dangerous gleam.

She raised her free hand in the air, lifting the raging Sith off the floor and flung him across the room. The inquisitor crashed into the wall next to the locked security door with a sickening crunch and she watched as cracks spider webbed out from his impact point before the entire section of the wall gave way and collapsed into the next room in a thick cloud of dust. The building groaned and shuttered as it adjusted to the newest damage to its foundation but Nikita stayed still as a statue, not even daring to breathe as she listened for any sign of the Sith. She could still sense him, but there was too much interference from the wound that already existed in this place for her to pinpoint where he was.

She saw Boba turn and look at the Trandoshan who nodded in return. The two walked forward, weapons ready, and climbed over the mound of crumbled wall that bridged the two rooms. She didn't hear any sounds of fighting after they disappeared into the next room and she pushed herself up gingerly on her good leg, hobbling at a slow pace after them. It was an agonizing several minutes later when she made it through the new hole in the wall.

The space beyond appeared to have once been an office area, but only a few cubicle walls, some chairs, and a badly decayed desk remained intact. The artificial lighting still flickered overhead in some areas, casting a dim glow in the room that her eyes strained to adjust to. The room was massive, and it was empty. The inquisitor had disappeared, likely running off to lick his wounds, but she knew he would be back. He knew about the life bond between her and Boba now. He wasn't going to give them the chance to escape. She glanced around the room but the inquisitor was suppressing his force signature, using the interference echoing through the force to mask his location. They were going to have to wait him out.


End file.
